Rethymno: ship breakdown, departure banned

The cargo ship «Thalassitis» suffered a mechanical fault in two of its port-side engines on Wednesday 16 September 2026, while sailing north of Rethymno port bound for the city’s harbour. Despite the technical problem, the ship managed to complete its arrival safely, with no injury reported among any of the 36 people on board. The port authority banned the vessel’s departure until the necessary inspections and repairs are completed, a measure aimed solely at ensuring the safety of navigation and not a finding of fault on the part of the shipowner or crew for the incident.

According to information released the same day, the «Thalassitis» had departed from Keratsini bound for Rethymno, carrying a total of 36 people: seven passengers and 29 crew members. The fault was found in the ship’s two port-side engines during the voyage, as the vessel was approaching its destination from the north, off the coast of Rethymno. The crew managed to keep control of the vessel and complete the arrival without further complications, which limited the consequences of the technical problem to the minimum possible and averted the need for a rescue operation.

The temporary immobilisation of a cargo ship at the port of Rethymno is a reminder of its role as a point for moving goods and passengers for the area, since Crete’s geographical position makes sea links crucial for supplying the island with essential goods. The departure ban imposed by the competent port authorities is the established safety procedure in such cases, aimed at ruling out any potential risk before the ship returns to full operation and resumes its route. The company operating the ship was not named in the available reports, nor were further technical details given on the cause of the fault.

The timetable for completing the repairs and resuming the departure has not been made known by the authorities, as inspections were under way at the time the news was reported. The incident comes at a time when Crete’s port issues are in the spotlight, with other infrastructure projects, such as those in Souda, under way in parallel and highlighting the importance of the island’s port infrastructure. The three sources that reported the incident, CretaOne, ERT and Rethemnos News, agree on the basic facts, with no contradiction recorded in the data known so far regarding the number of people on board or the development of the incident. Until the inspection process is complete, the «Thalassitis» remains moored at the port of Rethymno, with the competent services having given no further details on the progress of the repairs.