Court imposes fine over ship still lying on Santorini seabed

Fifteen years after the Sea Diamond cruise ship sank off the coast of the island of Santorini, national and local authorities have still not salvaged the wreck.

Last Friday, the Council of State, Greece’s highest administrative court, imposed a 5,000-euro fine on the Ministry of Shipping and Island Policy and the island’s main port for not complying with the court’s order, from 2019, to proceed with the salvaging.

The fine is small, but local opinion is gathering steam: It was the island’s citizens who petitioned the court and they are increasingly agitated by the continued presence of the 21,500-ton, 143-meter ship, which has become an artificial reef and a potential navigation hazard.