Dozens of terrified cruise passengers were left floating in the Caribbean Sea after a catamaran they had been travelling on sank during an excursion.

Around 55 holidaymakers had been taking part in a sailing activity as part of their cruise holiday on Saturday in the Dominican Republic. 

The 40ft catamaran they had been travelling on, named Boca de Yuma I, sprang a leak and quickly began sinking in the bay of Samana.

The yacht filled with water and images from the scene shows dozens of tourists bobbing in the sea wearing lifejackets.

The Navy, civil defence authorities, and first responders launched a rescue mission to save the 55 passengers who had been left stranded in open waters.

Rescue workers were eventually able to pull all the holidaymakers from the sea unharmed.

Images of the rescue showed part of the catamaran poking through the water’s surface before it completely disappeared.

The provincial director of civil protection told the Dominican Republic daily newspaper Diario Libre that the cause of the sinking was still unknown and is being investigated by experts. 

Preliminary findings suggest a ‘technical defect’ in the catamaran’s hull. 

The passengers had been holidaying on the German TUI cruise ship Mein Schiff 1 before disembarking on to the catamaran, provided by an external company.

Sabine Lüke, spokesperson for TUI Cruises, told BILD: ‘We confirm that an excursion catamaran belonging to an external provider sank during a shore excursion programme.

‘There were just over 50 guests from the Mein Schiff 1 on board, who are all safe and sound and have since returned safely to the ship.’ 

The spokesperson did not provide details regarding the nationalities of those affected.

TUI Cruises is reportedly in close contact with the operator and the relevant authorities regarding the ship accident to conduct a thorough investigation. 

Lüke added: ‘The safety and well-being of our guests is our top priority. Should individual assistance be necessary, it will of course be provided.’

The cruise is now en route to Montego Bay, Jamaica, according to the monitoring service CruiseMapper.

It comes after a newlywed couple who survived a shipwreck said that they shared a life jacket after their boat sank on their honeymoon cruise in the Maldives with nearly 50 people on board.

Doctor Caio Gomes and his wife, businesswoman Fernanda Diniz, from Brazil, were on their honeymoon in the Maldives when their boat sank while being ferried from Dhigurah Island to the capital, Malé on March 2.

Speaking to Brazilian media, the couple said they had to share a life jacket until they were rescued, with distressing footage showing them in rough waters as they wait to be saved.

Gomes said that no one was injured but that the ordeal was traumatic nonetheless.

He said: ‘Nobody got hurt. There were no injuries, no scratches, nothing, just psychological trauma, because it was a huge blow for us.’

The doctor said that they had been sailing for approximately 40 minutes after leaving one of the islands when the boat hit a wave too hard.