A cruise ship is being diverted to Bermuda so a critically ill passenger can be rushed to hospital.

The 69-year-old male passenger, believed to be from the Netherlands, began feeling ill this morning with suspected pneumonia.

The liner, the MS Nieuw Amsterdam, was travelling from Ponta Delgada in the Azores to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and was 12 hours away from Bermuda when it was decided to bring the ship here, according to Bermuda Maritime Operations.

The vessel is due to arrive in the East End of the Island at about 11.30pm tonight.

The sick passenger, his wife, the ship’s doctor and ship’s nurse will be transferred by pilot boat to Ordnance Island, and then taken to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

He will be airlifted off the Island tomorrow for treatment, but it is not known to where he will be flown.