‘Rogue wave’ kills passenger on Viking Polaris

“Our focus remains on the safety and wellbeing of our guests and crew, and we are working directly with them to arrange return travel,” the company added in a statement issued on Friday.

The airline withheld the passenger’s identity and country of origin.

The deceased passenger was an American woman, according to Argentine news agency Telam, who “took blows from a glass surface that collapsed in the middle of the storm.”

The 202m (662 foot) ship, which was finished this year, arrived in Argentina on Wednesday and Viking said it had suffered “minimal damage” from the wave’s impact.

The planned trip, which was to have taken place from December 5–17 and involved the ship sailing toward Antarctica, has been cancelled by the firm.

Rogue waves have the potential to be twice as large as nearby waves, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They frequently appear out of the blue from directions different than the one of the wind.

Rogue waves are less frequent but are getting more intense, increasing the risk to international commerce, according to a 2019 study.