The Norwegian cruise ship Viking Sky, which suffered an engine failure and has roughly 1 300 passengers and crew on board, had sent a mayday signal as it had been drifting towards land.

Smith tweeted: "My parents [are on] board, if anyone knows anything please message!"

When contacted for comment, News24 was told by a gentleman that the former cricketer was in a meeting. A woman answered a follow-up call, saying "he is still waiting for news and not taking any calls at the moment".

Officials in Norway say they have managed to rescue about 100 people from the cruise ship stranded off the country's western coast amid ongoing evacuation operations.

The crew was later able to restart one engine and the vessel was at anchor about two kilometres from land in Hustadsvika Bay, allowing the evacuation effort to continue. 

Rescue teams with helicopters and boats were sent to help, and the evacuation process was expected to take several hours.

News24