Cruise Ship Helps Rescue 2 People from a Boat ‘in Distress’ Near Boston

A cruise ship sailing out of Boston helped rescue two individuals over the weekend, the cruise line has confirmed.

On Aug. 30, Holland America Line’s Zuiderdam responded to “a request from [the] U.S. Coast Guard Sector Boston to assist a sailing vessel in distress,” a spokesperson for the company shared in a statement with PEOPLE.  

The ship, on a seven-day one-way trip to Quebec City, Canada, departed Boston on Aug. 30, according to CruiseMapper. 

Crews altered course to reach the distressed vessel, which was just off the coast of Massachusetts’ capital city. According to Holland America’s spokesperson, the vessel in distress was about 10 miles away and the Zuiderdam reached the ship 35 minutes after the initial request. Eventually, two passengers were brought onboard.

“The individuals were subsequently transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard without incident,” the statement continued. “Zuiderdam resumed its voyage, arriving at the next scheduled port of call in Portland, Maine, with no delay or operational impact.”

According to Holland America’s website, their seven-day Canada and New England cruise includes stops in Halifax and Sydney, Nova Scotia; Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island and cruising the Gulf of St Lawrence before its final stop in Quebec City. The current voyage is set to end on Sept. 6. 

A representative for the U.S. Coast Guard Northeast District said the distress call came from the “sailing vessel Atlaya with 2 people on board reporting that they were taking on water southeast of the Merrimack River.”

They added in their statement to PEOPLE: “The Zuiderdam safely transferred the people to Coast Guard Station Merrimack River’s vessel. There were no injuries reported.”

Cruise ships assisting in at-sea rescues is not uncommon. Earlier this year, a Carnival cruise ship saved five people in distress on a small boat in May. 

Carnival’s Paradise conducted a rescue south of Cabo San Antonio, Cuba, on May 14, as it was traveling between Key West, Fla. and Jamaica, a spokesperson for the company shared in a statement with PEOPLE.

Crew members spotted a small boat “in distress” and helped five people on board. 

“The five people who requested rescue were part of a larger group on board the small boat,” the representative said. “The other occupants did not wish to join the ship but were given food and water by the ship’s team.”

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Following the rescue, officers on the Paradise alerted the U.S. Coast Guard, the representative said. However, the cruise line did not confirm the identity of the individuals and did not clarify what caused the distress. 

PEOPLE reached out to the U.S. Coast Guard for comment but did not receive an immediate response. 

Carnival made another rescue in January. According to a press release, the Jubilee ship rescued two men stranded in a kayak in the Gulf of Mexico. The men were eventually transferred to Mexican Navy officials.