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Carnival cruise ship catches fire for the second time in 2 years

By Emily Mae Czachor

Updated on: March 25, 2024 / 9:57 AM EDT / CBS News

A Carnival cruise ship will be out of commission for repairs for at least a week after its exhaust funnel caught fire and partially collapsed Saturday during a trip to the Bahamas. It marked the second time in just under two years that the funnel on this same ship, the Carnival Freedom, went up in flames while carrying passengers. 

What caused the most recent incident is still being investigated, according to the cruise company. No one on board the ship was injured, but Carnival said two fire crew members were treated for minor smoke inhalation.

The Carnival Freedom left from Port Canaveral, Florida, on Thursday and was supposed to travel for several days through the Bahamas before returning Monday to Port Canaveral. It was not immediately clear how many passengers and crew were on board the Freedom when the fire erupted, but the cruise ship can accommodate 2,980 guests and 1,150 crew members at capacity. CBS News contacted Carnival for more information.

The ship initially reported a fire at around 3:15 p.m. EDT on Saturday, on the port side of the ship's exhaust funnel as it sailed 20 miles off of the Bahamas' Eleuthera Island en route to Freeport, the company said in a statement. It had changed course to turn toward Freeport, at the northern tip of the island chain, after cancelling a stop farther south in Princess Cays because of bad weather. Eyewitnesses said that a lightning strike may have sparked the fire, a claim that Carnival said "is being investigated but cannot yet be confirmed."

A fire response team was activated quickly to put out the blaze once it broke out, as the Freedom's captain shifted the cruise liner toward the heavy rain nearby in hopes that would help. The fire was extinguished by 5:20 p.m., Carnival said, including flames from a portion of the funnel that broke off and fell onto one of the ship decks. Funnels are essentially used as smokestacks or chimneys to expel fumes and engine exhaust.

The U.S. Coast Guard said the Carnival Freedom crew was able to extinguish the fire Saturday without their help. They were aware of the fire, though, and issued a Captain of the Port order to the cruise ship before it was scheduled to enter Port Canaveral, Florida, on Monday. Captain of the Port orders are  broad mandates that the Marine Safety and Security Council describes as a tool granting Coast Guard crews "with operational controls over an emergent situation posing safety, security, or environmental risks."

 "We are continuing to monitor the situation," the Coast Guard said in a statement.

Although Carnival said at first that it did not expect the fire to impact trips on the Freedom cruise set to depart Port Canaveral on Monday and Friday, a technical assessment carried out in Freeport on Sunday revealed more significant damage to the ship than they originally thought. The damage would "require an immediate repair to stabilize the funnel" after disembarking guests in Port Canaveral on Monday, the company said in an updated statement following the assessment. 

"The funnel has been stabilized for the ship's return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests, and then it will go to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to begin the required repairs," Carnival said on Sunday. "We sincerely regret the impact to our embarking guests, as we know they have been looking forward to their spring break vacation." 

Both Carnival Freedom cruises scheduled for this week have been cancelled. Carnival said guests who had booked those cruises would receive full refunds and future cruise credits.

The Carnival Freedom's exhaust funnel last went up in flames less than two years ago, in May 2022. It was in Grand Turk at the time, during a planned five-day trip from Port Canaveral. The ship had 2,504 guests and 972 crew on board, Carnival said at the time. None of the passengers or crew were hurt.

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Emily Mae Czachor is a reporter and news editor at CBSNews.com. She covers breaking news, often focusing on crime and extreme weather. Emily Mae has previously written for outlets including the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed and Newsweek.

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Dramatic: Carnival Ship Suffers Fire at Sea (See the Video)

Fire is the biggest danger of any vessel at sea. On Saturday, crew of the Carnival Freedom had to deal with that danger firsthand when the ship’s funnel caught on fire in the middle of the cruise.

The incident occurred at around 3:15 p.m. on Saturday, with the ship sailing in The Bahamas. According to a passenger on the ship, Heath Barnes, the fire was caused by lightning as Freedom went through a thunderstorm.

“I knew the boom and thunder that I heard shortly before the fire hit something. It was the loudest I had ever heard in my life,” he posted on Facebook .

Images shared online show the port side of the funnel in flames and putting off a thick, black smoke:

Crew on board cruise ships are trained in firefighting and were able to put out the flames, with a little help from mother nature. Carnival says the captain was able steer the vessel toward heavy rain to help with the efforts to extinguish the fire.

In a statement to news station WFLA.com , Carnival shared the following:

“The ship’s fire response team was quickly activated, and the ship’s captain also turned the vessel towards the heavy rain in the area to maximize the efforts to put out the flames. Eyewitnesses reported the possibility of a lightning strike and that is being investigated but cannot yet be confirmed.”

The news station reports that there were no injuries to passengers, but two crew members that fought the fire were treated for “minor smoke inhalation.”

An image of the aftermath shows one wing of the funnel heavily damaged after the flames were put out:

If the sight of a Carnival funnel on fire looks familiar, well, it is a bit of deja vu. The same exact ship had its funnel catch fire in 2022 while in Grand Turk .

At that time the funnel was damaged so heavily the cruise line had to cancel its cruises for two weeks for repairs

Freedom then returned with a new streamlined funnel without the famous “wings.” Only later when the ship was in drydock was it then replaced with the regular Carnival-style winged funnel.

No word yet on if Freedom will see any canceled cruises from this incident. The ship was planned to be at sea today before returning to Port Canaveral Monday morning. It is now headed to Freeport, The Bahamas.

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Carnival cruise ship catches fire in Grand Turk

A Carnival cruise ship caught fire as it was docked in Grand Turk on Thursday morning, officials said. 

The fire, which broke out in the Carnival Freedom ship's funnel, was quickly extinguished as the ship was in Grand Turk, the capital island of the Turks and Caicos archipelago southeast of the Bahamas, a Carnival spokesperson said Thursday morning.

"All guests and crew are safe, and the ship’s guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore. We continue to assess the situation," a spokesperson said in a statement about the fire at around 8:45 a.m. ET.

Just before 11 a.m., passengers were still on shore at Grand Turk.

The ship had left Port Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida, on Monday for a five-day cruise, officials said.

It's not yet clear what caused the fire.

According to the marine tracking site CruiseMapper , the ship, which was built in 2007, is 948 feet long and can accommodate over 3,500 passengers. 

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Carnival Freedom's next two cruises from Port Canaveral canceled after exhaust funnel fire

A fire in the exhaust funnel of the Carnival Freedom this weekend has disrupted a cruise of the Port Canaveral-based ship for the second time in less than two years — and will mean that the ship's next two cruises are canceled.

Damage to the funnel will require the cancellation of Carnival's next two cruises out of Port Canaveral, which were scheduled to depart Monday and Friday.

Thousands of passengers with scheduled cruises will be affected by the canceled cruises during a busy spring break period for Carnival and other cruise lines.

Carnival initially had said it expected no changes in its upcoming cruises, but on Sunday afternoon said the cancellations would be required.

"Regrettably, the damage is more than we first thought, and will require an immediate repair to stabilize the funnel, resulting in the cancellation of the March 25 and March 29 cruises from Port Canaveral," according to a statement issued by Matt Lupoli, Carnival Cruise Line's senior manager of public relations. "The funnel has been stabilized for the ship’s return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests, and then it will go to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to begin the required repairs."

Carnival said it made the decision after "our technical team completed a thorough assessment" during the ship’s visit Sunday to Freeport in the Bahamas.

In the statement, Carnival said: "We sincerely regret the impact to our embarking guests, as we know they have been looking forward to their spring break vacation. We are providing all guests on both canceled cruises a full refund and a 100% future cruise credit, so they can come back and enjoy a future cruise with us. We also greatly appreciate the terrific guests who are currently sailing with us, for their outstanding cooperation and support."

In a Facebook post, Carnival's widely followed brand ambassador, John Heald, conceded that many people who booked one of the canceled cruises are "feeling very disappointed," and he apologized for the turn of events.

But, Heald added that he wanted to assure affected passengers that, "when you rebook, using your full refund and your 100% future cruise credit, that the crew will be standing by to give you all the fun you deserve."

More than 500 people responded to the post, with many saying they thought Carnival was generous with the compensation offer. But some people who said they were on the cruise that experienced the fire said they thought Carnival should have done more for the people who were on the ship.

Carnival said the fire was confined to the funnel area. The cruise line said there are no reports of injuries to passengers. Two firefighting crew members were treated for minor smoke inhalation.

Carnival said that, at about 3:15 p.m. Saturday, the Carnival Freedom reported a fire on the port side of the ship’s exhaust funnel. The ship was 20 miles off Eleuthera Island, Bahamas, heading to Freeport after a canceled call to the Carnival private island of Princess Cay due to adverse weather.

Details of previous fire: Fire breaks out on Carnival Freedom while Port Canaveral-based ship was in Grand Turk

"The ship’s fire response team was quickly activated, and the ship’s captain also turned the vessel towards the heavy rain in the area to maximize the efforts to put out the flames," an earlier Carnival statement said. "Eyewitnesses reported the possibility of a lightning strike, and that is being investigated, but cannot yet be confirmed."

By 5:20 p.m. Saturday, the fire was extinguished. 

Carnival said the ship's captain made multiple announcements to passengers and crew, and advised all but essential safety personnel to stay away from balconies and all open decks. 

The port-side portion of the funnel had fallen onto Deck 10, and the firefighting response put out any flames. 

The U.S. Coast Guard has been notified of the fire, and Carnival activated its incident response team to support the ship’s crew. 

Carnival said there were no other operational issues with the ship’s systems, and the ship, which was on a four-night cruise, was visiting Freeport on Sunday.

The Freedom sailed into the channel at Port Canaveral around 7:30 a.m. Monday, and docked at Cruise Terminal 6, letting off the passengers who were on the cruise. Carnival then awaited a Coast Guard inspection of the ship before it could be cleared to leave Port Canaveral for the Freeport shipyard for repairs. The ship left the port about 6:20 p.m.

A cruise ship funnel generally serves as a smokestack to lift emissions above the deck, thus away from passengers and crew.

On Saturday evening, "Carnival Freedom guests enjoyed the Elegant Night dinner as planned, and, with the exception of the open decks, all areas of the ship are fully functioning," Carnival said in its statement. 

The sailing had about 3,700 passengers onboard. And the two upcoming sailings that were canceled each likely would have had a similar passenger count, because this is a busy time for the cruise industry.

The Carnival Freedom's next voyage was scheduled to depart from Port Canaveral on Monday afternoon on a five-night Eastern Caribbean cruise. That cruise had port-of-call stops scheduled at Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic and at Grand Turk Island in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

But that sailing and a Friday sailing both have been canceled. Friday's five-night sailing also was scheduled to stop at those two ports of call, but in reverse order.

In May 2022, a fire broke out in the funnel area of the Carnival Freedom while it was docked in Grand Turk. Carnival then canceled three scheduled sailings of the Carnival Freedom out of Port Canaveral because of the need to repair the ship's fire damage at a shipyard in Grand Bahama.

More recently, in October 2023, the Carnival Freedom debuted a new iconic winged funnel after returning from a 16-day dry-dock refurbishment in Cadiz, Spain.

Dave Berman is business editor at  FLORIDA TODAY.  Contact Berman at  [email protected] , on X at  @bydaveberman  and on Facebook at  www.facebook.com/dave.berman.54

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Carnival Freedom's next two sailings canceled after funnel fire, second within 2 years

A fire in the exhaust funnel of the Carnival Freedom this weekend has disrupted a cruise for the second time in less than two years — and will mean that the Florida-based ship's next two sailings are canceled.

Damage to the funnel will require the cancellation of Carnival's next two cruises out of Port Canaveral, which were scheduled to depart Monday and Friday.

There were about 3,700 passengers onboard the ship when the fire occured. And the two upcoming sailings, which were canceled, likely would have had a similar passenger count amid the busy Spring Break season.

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Carnival initially had said it expected no changes in its upcoming cruises, but on Sunday afternoon said the cancellations would be required.

"Regrettably, the damage is more than we first thought, and will require an immediate repair to stabilize the funnel, resulting in the cancellation of the March 25 and March 29 cruises from Port Canaveral," according to a statement issued by Matt Lupoli, Carnival Cruise Line's senior manager of public relations. "The funnel has been stabilized for the ship’s return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests, and then it will go to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to begin the required repairs."

Carnival said it made the decision after "our technical team completed a thorough assessment" during the ship’s visit Sunday to Freeport in the Bahamas.

In the statement, Carnival said: "We sincerely regret the impact to our embarking guests, as we know they have been looking forward to their spring break vacation. We are providing all guests on both canceled cruises a full refund and a 100% future cruise credit, so they can come back and enjoy a future cruise with us. We also greatly appreciate the terrific guests who are currently sailing with us, for their outstanding cooperation and support."

In a Facebook post, Carnival's widely followed brand ambassador, John Heald, conceded that many people who booked one of the canceled cruises are "feeling very disappointed," and he apologized for the turn of events.

But, Heald added that he wanted to assure affected passengers that, "when you rebook, using your full refund and your 100% future cruise credit, that the crew will be standing by to give you all the fun you deserve."

More than 500 people responded to the post, with many saying they thought Carnival was generous with the compensation offer. But some people who said they were on the cruise that experienced the fire said they thought Carnival should have done more for the people who were on the ship.

Carnival said the fire was confined to the funnel area. The cruise line said there are no reports of injuries to passengers. Two firefighting crew members were treated for minor smoke inhalation.

Carnival said that, at about 3:15 p.m. Saturday, the Carnival Freedom reported a fire on the port side of the ship’s exhaust funnel. The ship was 20 miles off Eleuthera Island, Bahamas, heading to Freeport after a canceled call to the Carnival private island of Princess Cays due to adverse weather.

"The ship’s fire response team was quickly activated, and the ship’s captain also turned the vessel towards the heavy rain in the area to maximize the efforts to put out the flames," an earlier Carnival statement said. "Eyewitnesses reported the possibility of a lightning strike, and that is being investigated, but cannot yet be confirmed."

By 5:20 p.m. Saturday, the fire was extinguished. 

How safe are cruise stops? Travel advisories are only one marker for destinations

Carnival said the ship's captain made multiple announcements to passengers and crew, and advised all but essential safety personnel to stay away from balconies and all open decks. 

The port-side portion of the funnel had fallen onto Deck 10, and the firefighting response put out any flames. 

The U.S. Coast Guard has been notified of the fire, and Carnival activated its incident response team to support the ship’s crew. 

Carnival said there were no other operational issues with the ship’s systems, and the ship, which was on a four-night cruise, was visiting Freeport on Sunday.

A cruise ship funnel generally serves as a smokestack to lift emissions above the deck, thus away from passengers and crew.

On Saturday evening, "Carnival Freedom guests enjoyed the Elegant Night dinner as planned, and, with the exception of the open decks, all areas of the ship are fully functioning," Carnival said in its statement. 

The Carnival Freedom's next voyage was scheduled to depart from Port Canaveral on Monday afternoon on a five-night Eastern Caribbean cruise. That cruise had port-of-call stops scheduled at Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic and at Grand Turk Island in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

But that sailing and a Friday sailing both have been canceled. Friday's five-night sailing also was scheduled to stop at those two ports of call, but in reverse order.

In May 2022 , a fire broke out in the funnel area of the Carnival Freedom while it was docked in Grand Turk. Carnival then canceled three scheduled sailings of the Carnival Freedom out of Port Canaveral because of the need to repair the ship's fire damage at a shipyard in Grand Bahama.

More recently, in October 2023, the Carnival Freedom debuted a new iconic winged funnel after returning from a 16-day dry-dock refurbishment in Cadiz, Spain.

Dave Berman is business editor at  FLORIDA TODAY.  Contact Berman at  [email protected] .

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Carnival Freedom's next two sailings canceled after funnel fire, second within 2 years