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Christmas Day Cruise 'Disaster'

P&O Cruises Arvia ship

A gay couple on board the maiden voyages describes an "absolute disaster."

According to The Times passengers aboard one cruise ship's first seafaring trip were fuming over a "ruined" Christmas Day.

After booking dream vacations to the Canary Islands on P&O's new ship, The Arvia, the unhappy passengers complained about long lines, lost reservations, and not seating for dinner until after 11 pm.

In a press release earlier this month announcing Arvia's inauguration, P&O Cruises president, Paul Ludlow, called the ship “the latest evolution in the P&O Cruises experience," and said it "embodies the newest trends in travel, dining and entertainment and is the epitome of a sunshine resort sailing year-round to the warmest climates." He added that “Arvia is a very evident symbol of optimism for the future of the cruise industry."

But many passengers felt the cruise line had been too optimistic about launching the giant ship in time for the 2022 holiday season. Arvia is one of the largest at sea, featuring a “SkyDome” pool with a retractable roof, an infinity pool, an aerial obstacle course, 16 decks for guests and 12 restaurants.

One queer couple aboard, Dominik Scott, who reviews cruises on YouTube with his partner, Tom Hughes-Lewis, told The Times that some "teething" issues could to be expected on any maiden voyage, as operators discover new problems when its put to the test. Still Scott felt the Christmas meltdown was unusual.

"On Christmas Day we were quite lucky. Other people's day was an absolute disaster. We didn't experience anything half as bad," Scott told the The Times . "People like to stop and talk to us because they recognize us from YouTube and a lot of people aren't very happy."

A P&O spokesperson told The Times that connectivity problems "caused dining issues and restaurant delays for a proportion of guests on Christmas Day. This service was certainly not up to our usual high standards and we wholeheartedly apologize."

P&O Cruises is a favorite in the U.K. and touts its "exceptional service catered towards British tastes."

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How the Wreck of a Cruise Liner Changed an Italian Island

Ten years ago the Costa Concordia ran aground off the Tuscan island of Giglio, killing 32 people and entwining the lives of others forever.

By Gaia Pianigiani

GIGLIO PORTO, Italy — The curvy granite rocks of the Tuscan island of Giglio lay bare in the winter sun, no longer hidden by the ominous, stricken cruise liner that ran aground in the turquoise waters of this marine sanctuary ten years ago.

Few of the 500-odd residents of the fishermen’s village will ever forget the freezing night of Jan. 13, 2012, when the Costa Concordia shipwrecked, killing 32 people and upending life on the island for years.

“Every one of us here has a tragic memory from then,” said Mario Pellegrini, 59, who was deputy mayor in 2012 and was the first civilian to climb onto the cruise ship after it struck the rocks near the lighthouses at the port entrance.

The hospitality of the tight-knit community of islanders kicked in, at first to give basic assistance to the 4,229 passengers and crew members who had to be evacuated from a listing vessel as high as a skyscraper. In no time, Giglio residents hosted thousands of journalists, law enforcement officers and rescue experts who descended on the port. In the months to come, salvage teams set up camp in the picturesque harbor to work on safely removing the ship, an operation that took more than two years to complete.

The people of Giglio felt like a family for those who spent long days at its port, waiting to receive word of their loved ones whose bodies remained trapped on the ship. On Thursday, 10 years to the day of the tragedy, the victims’ families, some passengers and Italian authorities attended a remembrance Mass and threw a crown of flowers onto the waters where the Costa Concordia had rested. At 9:45 p.m., the time when the ship ran aground, a candlelit procession illuminated the port’s quay while church bells rang and ship sirens blared.

What stands out now for many is how the wreck forever changed the lives of some of those whose paths crossed as a result. Friendships were made, business relations took shape and new families were even formed.

“It feels as if, since that tragic night, the lives of all the people involved were forever connected by an invisible thread,” Luana Gervasi, the niece of one of the shipwreck victims, said at the Mass on Thursday, her voice breaking.

Francesco Dietrich, 48, from the eastern city of Ancona, arrived on the island in February 2013 to work with the wreck divers, “a dream job,” he said, adding: “It was like offering someone who plays soccer for the parish team to join the Champions League with all the top teams in the business.”

For his work, Mr. Dietrich had to buy a lot of boat-repair supplies from the only hardware store in town. It was owned by a local family, and Mr. Dietrich now has a 6-year-old son, Pietro, with the family’s daughter.

“It was such a shock for us,” said Bruna Danei, 42, who until 2018 worked as a secretary for the consortium that salvaged the wreck. “The work on the Costa Concordia was a life-changing experience for me in many ways.”

A rendering of the Costa Concordia used by salvage teams to plan its recovery hung on the wall of the living room where her 22-month-old daughter, Arianna, played.

“She wouldn’t be here if Davide hadn’t come to work on the site,” Ms. Danei said, referring to Davide Cedioli, 52, an experienced diver from Turin who came to the island in May 2012 to help right the Costa Concordia — and who is also Arianna’s father.

From a barge, Mr. Cedioli monitored the unprecedented salvage operation that, in less than a day, was able to rotate the 951-foot vessel, partly smashed against the rocks, from the sea bottom to an upright position without further endangering the underwater ecosystem that it damaged when it ran aground.

“We jumped up and down in happiness when the parbuckling was completed,” Mr. Cedioli remembered. “We felt we were bringing some justice to this story. And I loved this small community and living on the island.”

The local council voted to make Jan. 13 a day of remembrance on Giglio, but after this year it will stop the public commemorations and “make it a more intimate moment, without the media,” Mr. Ortelli said during the mass.

“Being here ten years later brings back a lot of emotions,” said Kevin Rebello, 47, whose older brother, Russell, was a waiter on the Costa Concordia.

Russell Rebello’s remains were finally retrieved three years after the shipwreck, from under the furniture in a cabin, once the vessel was upright and being taken apart in Genoa.

“First, I feel close to my brother here,” Kevin Rebello said. “But it is also some sort of family reunion for me — I couldn’t wait to see the Giglio people.”

Mr. Rebello hugged and greeted residents on the streets of the port area, and recalled how the people there had shown affection for him at the time, buying him coffee and simply showing respect for his grief.

“Other victims’ families feel differently, but I am a Catholic and I have forgiven,” Mr. Rebello explained.

The Costa Concordia accident caused national shame when it became clear that the liner’s commander, Francesco Schettino, failed to immediately sound the general alarm and coordinate the evacuation, and instead abandoned the sinking vessel.

“Get back on board!” a Coast Guard officer shouted at Mr. Schettino when he understood that the captain was in a lifeboat watching people scramble to escape, audio recordings of their exchange later revealed. “Go up on the bow of the ship on a rope ladder, and tell me what you can do, how many people are there and what they need. Now!”

The officer has since pursued a successful career in politics, while Mr. Schettino is serving a 16-year sentence in a Roman prison for homicide and for abandoning the ship before the evacuation was completed. Other officials and crew members plea-bargained for lesser sentences.

During the trial, Mr. Schettino admitted that he had committed an “imprudence” when he decided to sail near the island of Giglio at high speed to greet the family of the ship’s headwaiter. The impact with the half-submerged rock near the island produced a gash in the hull more than 70 meters long, or about 76 yards, leading to blackouts on board and water pouring into the lower decks.

Mr. Schettino tried to steer the cruise ship toward the port to make evacuation easier, but the vessel was out of control and began to tip as it neared the harbor, making many lifeboats useless.

“I can’t forget the eyes of children, scared to death, and of their parents,” said Mr. Pellegrini, who had boarded the ship to speak with officials and organize the evacuation. “The metallic sound of the enormous ship tipping over and the gurgling of the sea up the endless corridors of the cruiser.”

Sergio Ortelli, who is still the mayor of Giglio ten years later, was similarly moved. “Nobody can go back and cancel those senseless deaths of innocent people, or the grief of their families,” he said. “The tragedy will always stay with us as a community. It was an apocalypse for us.”

Yet Mr. Ortelli said that the accident also told a different story, that of the skilled rescuers who managed to save thousands of lives, and of the engineers who righted the liner, refloated it and took it to the scrapyard.

While the global attention shifted away from Giglio, residents have stayed in touch with the outside world through the people who temporarily lived there.

For months, the Rev. Lorenzo Pasquotti, who was then a pastor in Giglio, kept receiving packages: dry-cleaned slippers, sweaters and tablecloths that were given to the cold, stranded passengers in his church that night, returned via courier.

One summer, Father Pasquotti ate German cookies with a German couple who were passengers on the ship. They still remembered the hot tea and leftovers from Christmas delicacies that they were given that night.

“So many nationalities — the world was at our door all of a sudden,” he said, remembering that night. “And we naturally opened it.”

Gaia Pianigiani is a reporter based in Italy for The New York Times.  More about Gaia Pianigiani

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'We all suffer from PTSD': 10 years after the Costa Concordia cruise disaster, memories remain

GIGLIO, Italy — Ten years have passed since the Costa Concordia cruise ship slammed into a reef and capsized off the Tuscan island of Giglio. But for the passengers on board and the residents who welcomed them ashore, the memories of that harrowing, freezing night remain vividly etched into their minds.

The dinner plates that flew off the tables when the rocks first gashed the hull. The blackout after the ship's engine room flooded and its generators failed. The final mad scramble to evacuate the listing liner and then the extraordinary generosity of Giglio islanders who offered shoes, sweatshirts and shelter until the sun rose and passengers were ferried to the mainland.

Italy on Thursday is marking the 10th anniversary of the Concordia disaster with a daylong commemoration that will end with a candlelit vigil near the moment the ship hit the reef: 9:45 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2012. The events will honor the 32 people who died that night, the 4,200 survivors, but also the residents of Giglio, who took in passengers and crew and then lived with the Concordia's wrecked carcass off their shore for another two years until it was righted and hauled away for scrap.

► CDC travel guidance: CDC warns 'avoid cruise travel' after more than 5,000 COVID cases in two weeks amid omicron

“For us islanders, when we remember some event, we always refer to whether it was before or after the Concordia,” said Matteo Coppa, who was 23 and fishing on the jetty when the darkened Concordia listed toward shore and then collapsed onto its side in the water.

“I imagine it like a nail stuck to the wall that marks that date, as a before and after,” he said, recounting how he joined the rescue effort that night, helping pull ashore the dazed, injured and freezing passengers from lifeboats.

The sad anniversary comes as the cruise industry, shut down in much of the world for months because of the coronavirus pandemic, is once again in the spotlight because of COVID-19 outbreaks that threaten passenger safety. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control last month  warned people across-the-board not to go on cruises, regardless of their vaccination status, because of the risks of infection.

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'We all suffer from PTSD'

For Concordia survivor Georgia Ananias, the COVID-19 infections are just the latest evidence that passenger safety still isn’t a top priority for the cruise ship industry. Passengers aboard the Concordia were largely left on their own to find life jackets and a functioning lifeboat after the captain steered the ship close too shore in a stunt. He then delayed an evacuation order until it was too late, with lifeboats unable to lower because the ship was listing too heavily.

“I always said this will not define me, but you have no choice," Ananias said in an interview from her home in Los Angeles, Calif. “We all suffer from PTSD. We had a lot of guilt that we survived and 32 other people died.”

Prosecutors blamed the delayed evacuation order and conflicting instructions given by crew for the chaos that ensued as passengers scrambled to get off the ship. The captain, Francesco Schettino, is serving a 16-year prison sentence for manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning a ship before all the passengers and crew had evacuated.

Ananias and her family declined Costa’s initial $14,500 compensation offered to each passenger and sued Costa, a unit of U.S.-based Carnival Corp., to try to cover the cost of their medical bills and therapy for the post-traumatic stress they have suffered. But after eight years in the U.S. and then Italian court system, they lost their case.

“I think people need to be aware that when you go on a cruise, that if there is a problem, you will not have the justice that you may be used to in the country in which you are living,” said Ananias, who went onto become a top official in the International Cruise Victims association, an advocacy group that lobbies to improve safety aboard ships and increase transparency and accountability in the industry.

Costa didn’t respond to emails seeking comment on the anniversary.

► Royal Caribbean cancels sailings: Pushes back restart on several ships over COVID

'We did something incredible'

Cruise Lines International Association, the world’s largest cruise industry trade association, stressed in a statement to The Associated Press that passenger and crew safety was the industry's top priority, and that cruising remains one of the safest vacation experiences available.

“Our thoughts continue to be with the victims of the Concordia tragedy and their families on this sad anniversary," CLIA said. It said it has worked over the past 10 years with the International Maritime Organization and the maritime industry to “drive a safety culture that is based on continuous improvement."

For Giglio Mayor Sergio Ortelli, the memories of that night run the gamut: the horror of seeing the capsized ship, the scramble to coordinate rescue services on shore, the recovery of the first bodies and then the pride that islanders rose to the occasion to tend to the survivors.

► Cruising during COVID-19: Cancellation, refund policies vary by cruise line

Ortelli was later on hand when, in September 2013, the 115,000-ton, 1,000-foot long cruise ship was righted vertical off its seabed graveyard in an extraordinary feat of engineering. But the night of the disaster, a Friday the 13th, remains seared in his memory.

“It was a night that, in addition to being a tragedy, had a beautiful side because the response of the people was a spontaneous gesture that was appreciated around the world,” Ortelli said.

It seemed the natural thing to do at the time. “But then we realized that on that night, in just a few hours, we did something incredible.”

10 years later, Costa Concordia disaster is still vivid for survivors

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Ten years have passed since the Costa Concordia cruise ship slammed into a reef and capsized off the Tuscan island of Giglio . But for the passengers on board and the residents who welcomed them ashore, the memories of that harrowing, freezing night remain vividly etched into their minds.

The dinner plates that flew off the tables when the rocks first gashed the hull. The blackout after the ship’s engine room flooded and its generators failed. The final mad scramble to evacuate the listing liner and then the extraordinary generosity of Giglio islanders who offered shoes, sweatshirts and shelter until the sun rose and passengers were ferried to the mainland.

Italy on Thursday is marking the 10th anniversary of the Concordia disaster with a daylong commemoration that will end with a candlelit vigil near the moment the ship hit the reef: 9:45 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2012. The events will honor the 32 people who died that night, the 4,200 survivors, but also the residents of Giglio, who took in passengers and crew and then lived with the Concordia’s wrecked carcass off their shore for another two years until it was righted and hauled away for scrap.

“For us islanders, when we remember some event, we always refer to whether it was before or after the Concordia,” said Matteo Coppa, who was 23 and fishing on the jetty when the darkened Concordia listed toward shore and then collapsed onto its side in the water.

“I imagine it like a nail stuck to the wall that marks that date, as a before and after,” he said, recounting how he joined the rescue effort that night, helping pull ashore the dazed, injured and freezing passengers from lifeboats.

The sad anniversary comes as the cruise industry, shut down in much of the world for months because of the coronavirus pandemic, is once again in the spotlight because of COVID-19 outbreaks that threaten passenger safety. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control last month warned people across-the-board not to go on cruises , regardless of their vaccination status, because of the risks of infection.

A dozen passengers on cruise ship test positive for coronavirus

The passengers, whose infections were found through random testing, were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms, according to the Port of San Francisco.

Jan. 7, 2022

For Concordia survivor Georgia Ananias, the COVID-19 infections are just the latest evidence that passenger safety still isn’t a top priority for the cruise ship industry. Passengers aboard the Concordia were largely left on their own to find life jackets and a functioning lifeboat after the captain steered the ship close too shore in a stunt. He then delayed an evacuation order until it was too late, with lifeboats unable to lower because the ship was listing too heavily.

“I always said this will not define me, but you have no choice,” Ananias said in an interview from her home in Los Angeles. “We all suffer from PTSD. We had a lot of guilt that we survived and 32 other people died.”

Prosecutors blamed the delayed evacuation order and conflicting instructions given by crew for the chaos that ensued as passengers scrambled to get off the ship. The captain, Francesco Schettino, is serving a 16-year prison sentence for manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning a ship before all the passengers and crew had evacuated.

Ananias and her family declined Costa’s initial $14,500 compensation offered to each passenger and sued Costa, a unit of U.S.-based Carnival Corp., to try to cover the cost of their medical bills and therapy for the post-traumatic stress they have suffered. But after eight years in the U.S. and then Italian court system, they lost their case.

“I think people need to be aware that when you go on a cruise, that if there is a problem, you will not have the justice that you may be used to in the country in which you are living,” said Ananias, who went onto become a top official in the International Cruise Victims association, an advocacy group that lobbies to improve safety aboard ships and increase transparency and accountability in the industry.

Costa didn’t respond to emails seeking comment on the anniversary.

Cruise Lines International Assn., the world’s largest cruise industry trade association, stressed in a statement to the Associated Press that passenger and crew safety were the industry’s top priority, and that cruising remains one of the safest vacation experiences available.

“Our thoughts continue to be with the victims of the Concordia tragedy and their families on this sad anniversary,” CLIA said. It said it has worked over the past 10 years with the International Maritime Organization and the maritime industry to “drive a safety culture that is based on continuous improvement.”

For Giglio Mayor Sergio Ortelli, the memories of that night run the gamut: the horror of seeing the capsized ship, the scramble to coordinate rescue services on shore, the recovery of the first bodies and then the pride that islanders rose to the occasion to tend to the survivors.

Ortelli was later on hand when, in September 2013, the 115,000-ton, 1,000-foot long cruise ship was righted vertical off its seabed graveyard in an extraordinary feat of engineering. But the night of the disaster, a Friday the 13th, remains seared in his memory.

“It was a night that, in addition to being a tragedy, had a beautiful side because the response of the people was a spontaneous gesture that was appreciated around the world,” Ortelli said.

It seemed the natural thing to do at the time. “But then we realized that on that night, in just a few hours, we did something incredible.”

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100 cruise passengers injured, some "flung to the floor" and "holding on for dear life" as ship hits fierce storm on way to U.K.

By Emily Mae Czachor

November 9, 2023 / 10:55 AM EST / CBS News

About 100 cruise ship passengers were injured last week when a fierce storm — which had cut short their scheduled trip around the Canary Islands — ended up hitting the ship in the Bay of Biscay as it routed back to the United Kingdom. Five passengers needed treatment in onboard medical facilities for more serious injuries, while the rest were described as minor. 

Nigel Banks, the CEO of British company Saga Cruises, said Spirit of Discovery had safely returned to the U.K. and all passengers had disembarked in a statement to CBS News on Thursday.

"We have apologised to all our guests who experienced such difficult weather conditions; we know that this was a very distressing experience for them," Banks said in the statement. 

Spirit of Discovery was carrying roughly 1,000 passengers on a two-week journey from Portsmouth, in southern England, through the Canary Islands off the western coast of Spain. The 14-night  "Canary Island Quintet" cruise , operated by Saga Cruises, left from Portsmouth on Oct. 24 and completed the first nine days of its prepared itinerary before beginning to confront a bout of bad weather. 

Conditions prompted the ship's captain to cancel their next planned stop in Las Palmas, where they were due to travel from the capital of Fuerteventura, another place in the Canary Islands, on Nov. 2. Instead, Spirit of Discovery changed directions to route toward the northwestern tip of mainland Spain, where the captain intended to dock the ship at La Coruña.

But while en route to the Spanish seaside town on the edge of the Bay of Biscay, the captain received word that the port at La Coruña would be closed because of bad weather. Hoping to stay ahead of the storm, the captain decided to start routing Spirit of Discovery back to the U.K. earlier than originally planned.

Spirit of Discovery encountered massive, tumultuous waves while crossing the Bay of Biscay, a body of water bordering Span and France that is known at times for especially turbulent currents. While crossing the bay, the ship's propulsion safety system activated and caused it to jerk suddenly to one direction, which essentially brought the vessel to a halt. 

A social media user on X said their parents were passengers on Spirit of Discovery during the cruise. 

"My elderly parents on board the Saga Spirit of Discovery and have also had a horrendous time in the storm, including getting flung to the floor in the dining room with tables and crockery falling on them," the post read , adding, "Why did the captain rush from the Canaries into the storm?"

One passenger, Alan Grisedale, filmed the enormous waves that rocked Spirit of Discovery in the Bay of Biscay and shared the footage with BBC News . Grisedale said the force against the ship was so great that his wife was knocked over, and furniture was pushed around inside their cabin, the BBC reported . Another passenger on the ship recalled in comments to the BBC that "tables were flying" and waves were "throwing people around all up and down the place."

Jan Bendall, a 75-year-old passenger who had taken the cruise with her husband, told the BBC that Spirit of Discovery remained stationary in the Bay of Biscay for about 15 hours while "caught in the middle of the storm." Bendall said that she and her husband were "holding on for dear life."

Banks, the cruise line's CEO, said the crew did "everything we could" to keep passengers safe.   

"We operate to the highest health and safety protocols and every decision was made based on advice from the ship's Master and forecasts from our dedicated marine meteorologists," Banks said in his statement. "We did everything we could at all times to keep our guests as safe as possible and to support them through the storm, including expert medical attention for those injured. I want to thank our guests for their patience and understanding and all our crew, who went over and above to care for everyone onboard."

• United Kingdom

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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Carnival passengers recount ‘nightmare’ cruise as storm floods ship

Videos showed the Carnival Sunshine cabins and hallways flooding and ceilings leaking

Matthew Branham and his fiancée, Madison Davis, were lying by a Carnival Sunshine pool on Friday aboard a cruise returning to Charleston, S.C., from the Bahamas when an announcement came over the loudspeaker. The captain was expecting rougher weather that evening, but there was nothing to worry about. So Branham and Davis didn’t worry.

As the day went on, “We noticed it started getting cooler in the afternoon — much, much cooler,” said Branham, 25, of Castlewood, Va. “And then it was like a switch was flipped, and it literally turned into a nightmare.”

En route back to Charleston Friday night into Saturday, the Carnival Sunshine navigated into a strong storm system that battered the southeast over the holiday weekend. Videos emerged on social media showing cabins and hallways flooding, shop floors littered with destroyed merchandise and leaking ceilings . Passenger Brad Morrell snapped a photo of an automated instrument map reporting a 69 knot, or 79 mph, wind.

#CarnivalSunshine : Due to return to Charleston, South Carolina this Saturday, May 27, 2023, has been delayed due to severe weather. The ship is currently off the South Carolina coast and holding position, unable to return to the port because of high winds & rough seas. #cruise 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/2B6HlAn2yD — ∼Marietta (@MariettaDaviz) May 28, 2023

Carnival said in a statement that the weather was unexpectedly strong, causing conditions that were rougher than forecast, but that its fleet operations center team, which relies on outside meteorology resources for itinerary planning, “coordinated to keep the ship in its safest location.”

“Attempting to sail out of the large front could have been dangerous,” the statement continued. “The ship proceeded to the port as soon as the weather began to clear.”

Strong Southeast storm slams Carolinas

Carnival said the captain made “several announcements about the weather and the delay it caused in returning to Charleston, asking guests to use extra precaution while walking around the ship.” Additionally, “some of the worst weather occurred in the overnight hours when announcements are not typically made, but guests and crew were safe.”

The ship’s medical staff did help a “small number” of guests and crew members who needed minor assistance following the storm. Despite the significant damage and a delay in schedule, Carnival Sunshine embarked on its next five-day Bahama sailing on Saturday.

From their sea-view room, Branham and Davis watched as waves surged over their window and braced themselves as the 892-foot-long ship lurched in the storm.

“Waves were hitting the boat so hard that it was like an earthquake experience, jarring you like a really rough roller coaster — even in the middle floor,” Branham said.

They were told to stay in their cabins. Meanwhile, Branham said, TVs were falling off walls, and glassware was sliding off shelves and shattering on the floor. “You could not stand up in your room,” he said. “You could be thrown from the bed.”

They packed up their belongings when their floor started to flood and took shelter in a main lobby area.

“All of the employees were sprinting downstairs with life vests,” Branham said. “There were little kids besides us screaming and crying and throwing fits.”

Throughout the storm, Branham wondered why there weren’t more announcements from Carnival staff. Besides the warning of rougher seas earlier Friday and one Saturday morning after they’d weathered the storm, Branham said they weren’t given any official updates on their situation. When he asked workers what was going on, they told him not to worry.

⁦⁦ @CarnivalCruise ⁩ #carnivalsunshine still 75mph winds at 9:25am. Sitting and spinning in the Atlantic. pic.twitter.com/NITCO2l9Ss — FlyersCaptain™®© (@flyerscaptain) May 29, 2023

“But you see rooms flooded, and you can pick up a handful of sand and you’re kind of like, ‘What in the world? Why is nobody telling us anything?’” Branham said.

Jim Walker, a maritime lawyer and cruise industry legal expert, says his firm has been contacted by some Carnival Sunshine passengers who were injured during the storm, including a man who says he was struck by a door and broke his foot. Others have asked him about the potential for a class-action lawsuit.

While Walker said passengers should make their complaints known to Carnival, he doesn’t believe filing a lawsuit would be an efficient next step. Instead, impacted passengers can ask Carnival for a refund or a credit for another cruise, although there’s no guarantee the cruise line will grant such requests.

Pete Peterson, owner of Storybook Cruises , which is affiliated with Cruise Planners, said cruise ships keep a close eye on weather developments and will adjust their itinerary depending on the severity of the storm.

“Cruise lines monitor the weather all the time. They’re not going to put their passengers in harm’s way,” said Peterson, who has been a cruise adviser for more than 20 years and has sailed on nearly 60 cruises. “Obviously, some cruise lines are better at doing this than others.”

In 2016, Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas returned to port after cruising into a “bomb cyclone,” which damaged the ship amid winds gusting to 100 mph. The ship sailed into the remnants of Hurricane Hermine seven months later, causing additional problems.

To ensure the safety and comfort of its passengers, a cruise ship can alter its course and circumvent the rough weather system. In stormy conditions, the crew can deploy the stabilizers, which will prevent the ship from rolling and bucking.

“You don’t experience the up and down,” Peterson said. “It’s not as rough a ride.”

Both approaches can add to a cruise line’s expenditures, Peterson said. Stabilizers slow the vessel, thereby consuming more fuel. Sailing around the storm can take longer than the original route and disrupt the company’s cruise schedule, leading to delays or cancellations. The cruise line may have to reimburse passengers or provide them with future credits because of the inconvenience.

“When they do something like that, it’s going to cost them money,” Peterson said.

Craig Setzer , a meteorologist and hurricane preparedness specialist, said that even with the hurricane-like conditions and flooding, “I would never be in doubt of the vessel’s integrity,” he said. “Cruise ships are structurally very, very sound and can survive a lot. They’re really rugged.”

Matthew Cappucci contributed to this report.

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The 9 Worst Cruise Ship Disasters

The Titanic may be the most famous ship disaster, but surprisingly, it’s not even close to being the deadliest wreck that ever occurred on a luxury liner. If you’re trying to dissuade someone from taking a cruise, you should show them this list of maritime misadventures presented in no particular order. Disclaimer: The vast majority of cruises sail without incident and are safe and not filled with poop. (Oh yeah, we’ll get there.) Get your plate ready for a buffet of high-seas horror.

1. RMS Titanic

F.G.O. Stuart (1843-1923) {{PD-old}} /Wikimedia Commons

The many experts in 1912 who considered the Titanic “unsinkable” were to be proven wrong on the boat’s maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City. Thomas Andrews had designed the ship to withstand head-on collisions and rammings from other ships. However, the North Atlantic Ocean iceberg that took down the vessel scraped through five of its 16 watertight compartments. The boat would have reportedly remained afloat if it had only gone through four. Like other systems at the time, the Titanic's lifeboats were designed to shepherd passengers to nearby rescue ships, not take them to shore. Unfortunately, help was many hours away in the wee hours of April 15 when the boat was going under. The poor crew organization also caused many lifeboats to leave the ship at far less than full capacity. Plus, they only had enough boats for about a third of the onboard. As a result, more than 1,500 people died — either on the ship or in the icy waters, waiting for help. A recent theory suggests a fire that started in the hull before the ship set sail weakened the vessel’s steel walls, making it susceptible to an iceberg that normally wouldn’t have caused as much damage.

2. Eastern Star’s Dongfang zhi Xing

In 2015, Dongfang zhi Xing was traveling on the Yangtze River in China when a thunderstorm struck, and the boat capsized. Ships in the area were warned that bad storms were coming and told to take precautions, but it is unclear if the Dongfang zhi Xing ever received the warnings and continued to sail. The ship was met with winds of up to 72-85 mph, and ultimately, a downburst (a strong downward wind) caused the ship to capsize and sink. Out of the 454 people on board, only 12 survived, making the total number of dead 442.

3. Carnival Cruise Line’s Triumph

DVIDSHUB/Flickr

A generator fire on Carnival Cruise Lines’s Triumph (now called Carnival Sunrise) left the ship powerless, and a late-night comedy punchline was born: “The Poop Cruise.” Without working bathrooms, passengers were forced to drop their payloads into red “hazardous waste” bags and stuff them into garbage cans left in the hall. Passengers described carpets soaked with more than two inches of raw sewage. News reports described the scene as a “shanty town” and a “new circle of hell.” One passenger reportedly called her husband and told him that their 12-year-old daughter had Skittles for breakfast. It took four days for the Triumph to be towed from the Gulf of Mexico to Mobile, Alabama, where it was possible to smell the ship from the dock. Later, 31 passengers claimed long-lasting damage, including PTSD, and sued. After the verdict, 27 of them split $118,000, many earning less than $3,000 (minus legal fees) for their troubles.

4. Costa Concordia

European Commission DG ECHO/Flickr

One of the biggest passenger ships ever wrecked, the Costa Concordia had 17 decks, six restaurants, a three-story theater, and enough room for 4,200 vacationers. On January 13, 2012, Captain Francesco Schettino agreed to a request by the ship’s chief maître d’, Antonello Tievoli, and sailed closer to Isola del Giglio than normal. Why? Tievoli, a native of Giglio, wanted to impress and “salute” local residents. Unfortunately, Captain Schettino turned off the ship’s alarm for the computer navigation system and later admitted he thought he knew the waters well enough to navigate by sight. However, the ship’s first mate testified that the captain had left his glasses in his cabin and requested them. The Costa Concordia struck an underwater rock, capsized, and sank, killing 32 passengers. Schettino’s worst maritime sin? He abandoned the ship with 300 passengers still onboard. A Coast Guard officer in contact with the ship at the time of the sinking claimed he told Schettino to get back onboard. After being convicted of manslaughter and pursuing several appeals, Schettino only started his 16-year prison sentence in May of 2017. The salvage effort (the ship was completely dismantled) was the largest effort of its kind.

5. SS Eastland

Launched in 1903, the SS Eastland was a passenger ship based in Chicago and used for tours. Although the ship had noted listing (tilting) since its inception and some measures had been taken to rectify this, the SS Eastland was still suffering from being top-heavy when boarding for a cruise in 1915. The ship was meant to sail from Chicago to Michigan City, Indiana, carrying workers from Western Electric Company’s Hawthorne Works for a picnic. On July 24, 2,572 passengers boarded, with many congregating on the open upper decks. While still docked, the ship began to list to the port side, and reportedly, at some point, more passengers rushed to the port side, causing the ship to roll onto its side completely. Despite the river’s bottom being just 20 feet below and the shore being about the same distance, a total of 844 passengers and crew members died, including 22 entire families.

6. Royal Pacific

When the Royal Pacific was first launched as a passenger ferry in 1964, it could carry 250 passengers, 91 cars, and 16 trucks. Sold and converted into a cruise ship in the late 1980s, the boat’s maiden voyage was a two-night “cruise to nowhere” from Singapore and sailed by Phuket, Malacca, and Penang before returning home. At around 2 a.m., when most passengers were asleep, the crew heard a loud bang, and the plates on the buffet table crashed to the ground. A Taiwanese trawler, Terfu 51, had accidentally rammed the ship, leaving a six-foot gash in the side. As the trawler pulled away, there was a deafening sound of metal scraping against metal. The PA system wasn’t working properly on the boat, but the safety officer ran downstairs to survey the damage. When he returned, he told everyone to put on their life jackets. Reports vary about how many passengers were impacted — most tallies number 30 dead and 70 injured. Several passengers also complained that a mix of Greek-, English- and Mandarin-speaking crew members led to few people understanding what anyone was saying.

7. SS Morro Castle

The story of the SS Morro Castle is so dreadful it’s surprising no Hollywood producer has turned the tale into a horror movie. Director Fritz Lang collaborated on a script about the tragedy, and named it “Hell Afloat” (which is a pretty apt description), but it was never made. Between 1930 and 1934, the SS Morro Castle regularly shuttled 480-plus passengers between Havana and New York. While onboard, there was no Depression to worry about and no Prohibition, which meant plenty of booze-filled partying. However, the September 1934 return sail from Cuba to the Big Apple seemed cursed. On September 7, Captain Robert Wilmott complained of stomach trouble after eating dinner and retired to his cabin, where he later died of an apparent heart attack. Chief Officer William Warms took command, and a few hours later, around 3 a.m. on September 8, a fire started in one of the storage lockers. The crew’s attempts to fight the fire were haphazard and inadequate, and soon, the blaze couldn’t be contained. Many crew members abandoned the ship, leaving confused passengers to fend for themselves in the dark, smoky hallways. Some jumped from the deck to their death in the water. Rescuers lined up on the Jersey Shore to meet the lifeboats carrying passengers. The next morning, the burning, black hull of the SS Morro Castle ran aground at Asbury Park, New Jersey. Of the 549 people aboard the cruise, 86 guests and 49 crew members died.

8. Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas

A cruise can be an oasis of calm in rough waters, but it’s also a petri dish of disease where viruses ricochet from passenger to passenger. In 2014, the Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas cruise from New Jersey to the Caribbean earned the dubious honor of being the ship with more sick passengers than any other boat trip since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention started keeping statistics more than 20 years ago. An estimated 700 passengers and crew members were sick at some point. Most cruise ship illnesses result from norovirus, that causes inflammation of the stomach and large intestines and regular trips to the “head.” If you’re wondering how to stay healthy on a cruise with sick passengers, plenty of handwashing (and avoiding ill people) is key. Bugs pass quickly through contact with ship railings, bathroom doors, and buffet food.

9. MTS Oceanos

Built by a French company and first launched in 1952, the MTS Oceanos was purchased by a Greek company in 1976. On August 3, 1991, Oceanos set sail for East London, South Africa, and headed north for Durban, led by Captain Yiannis Avranas. The ship reportedly headed into 40-knot winds and 30-foot swells, and thus, the typical sail-away outdoor deck party with British entertainers Moss and Tracy Hills was moved to an indoor lounge. The sea conditions worsened that night, leading to the ship rolling from side to side, and eventually, an explosion was heard due to a lack of repairs for the waste disposal system. This all led to the ship losing power and water filling its generator room, so the generators were shut down and the ship was led adrift. A distress call was sent and answered by numerous South African helicopters and a Dutch container ship. Shockingly, the captain and many crew members were among the first to be airlifted to shore, leaving the entertainment staff to coordinate the rescue efforts and help passengers to safety. All 571 passengers and crew members were saved by the time the ship sank nose-first into the sea.

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Norwegian safety body criticizes cruise ship that nearly ran aground in 2019 storm

FILE - The cruise ship Viking Sky arrives at port off Molde, Norway, Sunday March 24, 2019, after it issued a mayday call following engine problems in heavy seas off Norway’s western coast. A cruise ship carrying more than 1,370 people set sail along Norway’s often wild western coast despite storm warnings, forcing a major evacuation by helicopter, should never have left harbor, Norwegian officials said Tuesday, March 19, 2024, adding it could have developed into “the worst disasters at sea in modern times.” (Svein Ove Ekornesvag/NTB scanpix via AP, File)

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COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A cruise ship at the center of a dramatic evacuation off north Norway five years ago should never have left port because it was not up to safety standards, officials said Tuesday, adding that it could have developed into one of the worst disasters at sea in modern times.

In a report, the Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority upbraided the Viking Sky, saying it was ”a ship’s length from running aground.”

The ship left the northern city of Tromsoe carrying almost 1,400 people, despite storm warnings. It was headed for Stavanger in southern Norway when it had engine problems amid a storm on March 23, 2019, and issued a mayday call.

The ship anchored in heavy seas to avoid being dashed on the rocks in an area known for shipwrecks. Passengers saw a large wave crashing through glass doors and knocking people across the floor of an area where they had been instructed to gather.

Nearly 480 passengers were winched off the ship by helicopter despite high winds in a daring rescue operation . The captain then decided to halt the evacuation, and about 900 people were still on board when the ship limped into the Norwegian port of Molde on its own engines.

Dozens of people were injured during the ship’s harrowing ordeal, including 36 who were admitted to hospitals.

Norwegian authorities immediately launched a probe into the accident, which concluded Tuesday that the ship was unprepared to sail in rough seas.

“The accident was caused by insufficient lubricating oil in all of the operating diesel generators’ lubricating oil sump tanks, in combination with pitching and rolling in rough seas,” investigators wrote. “The investigation has identified operational, technical, and organisational safety issues that in different ways contributed to the blackout.”

“As Viking Sky did not comply with the applicable safety standards, it should not have departed Tromsoe under the prevailing circumstances,” the report said.

There was no immediate reaction from operator Viking Ocean Cruises.

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The world’s worst cruise ship disasters

Tragedies aboard cruise ships live on in infamy as the sinking of RMS Titanic, the biggest cruise disaster in history, bears witness. Ship-technology.com lists the worst ever cruise ship disasters.

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RMS Titanic

The sinking of RMS Titanic in April 1912 remains the worst, and the most infamous, cruise ship disaster in history. The sinking of the biggest passenger ship ever built at the time resulted in the death of more than 1,500 of the 2,208 people onboard.

The accident occurred when the ship hit an iceberg while cruising at its maximum speed of 23k on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City. The massive loss of life in the North Atlantic Ocean resulted mainly from hypothermia.

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RMS Titanic was the second of three Olympic-class ocean liners operated by White Star Line. It was constructed by the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast in three years and was designed by the naval architect Thomas Andrews.

RMS Titanic measured 269.11m in length, 28.042m in breadth, had a gross tonnage of 46,328t and comprised nine decks. The cruise ship was equipped with 20 lifeboats for 1,178 people.

The steamship’s three propellers were driven by two four-cylinder, triple-expansion, inverted reciprocating steam engines and one four-blade low-pressure Parsons turbine.

RMS Lusitania

The sinking of RMS Lusitania in May 1915, after being hit by the German military submarine U-20, caused 1,201 deaths during a voyage from New York to Liverpool. She was considered the largest, fastest and most luxurious ship in the world at the time of her launch in June 1906.

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The Lusitania disaster resulted in the death of many Americans and became one of the major reasons behind the US entering World War I.

The German submarine targeted the submarine as a naval ship, as it was also carrying war weapons for the British.

RMS Lusitania was built by John Brown and Co. of Scotland and completed its maiden voyage in September 1907. The steamship was owned and operated by Cunard Company; a rival of White Star Line, which owned the Titanic.

RMS Lusitania had an overall length of 239.8m, beam of 26.7m, draft of 10.2m, depth of 18.4m, gross tonnage of 31,550t and ten decks. It was designed to accmmodate 2,165 passengers and 827 crew members. It was equipped with four 375kW generator sets and possessed a service speed of 25k and a maximum speed of 26.35k.

RMS Empress of Ireland

RMS Empress of Ireland, which sank in the Saint Lawrence River in May 1914, claimed the lives of 1,012 people out of the 1,477 people onboard. It was the second major cruise ship disaster after the Titanic disaster. The Ocean Liner operated on the North Atlantic route between Quebec and Liverpool in England.

The passenger steamship collided with the 6,000t Norwegian collier, the Storstad, following a thick fog which engulfed the river. Just five of the 42 lifeboats could be launched into the water due to the listing of the vessel on her starboard side. The accident was aggravated by the cold conditions, failure to close the ship’s watertight doors and failure to close all portholes aboard.

RMS Empress of Ireland was owned by Canadian Pacific Steamship Company. It was designed by Francis Elgar and built by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering. The ocean liner was launched in January 1906 and completed her maiden voyage from Liverpool to Montreal in June 1906.

The cruise ship was 168m long, its beam measured 20m and gross tonnage was 14,191t. The ship was equipped with two steam engines and two quadruple expansion propellers, which provided a maximum operating speed of 20k.

MS Estonia, formerly known as Viking Sally, Silja Star and Wasa King during different periods from 1980 to 1993, sank in September 1994 during its voyage from Tallinn to Stockholm, resulting in 852 deaths, while 137 people were saved through rescue operations.

The cruise ferry accident was caused by rough sea conditions in the Baltic Sea, when wind speeds ranged from 35mph to 45mph. The bad sea conditions forced the ship to initially list on the starboard side and later sink completely.

The ferry was constructed by Meyer Werft at its shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, in 1980. The ferry, initially named Viking Sally, was delivered in June 1980 to its first owner Rederi Ab Sally. The vessel was operated by EstLine from 1993 to 1994.

MS Estonia measured 155.43m in length, 24.21m in breadth, had a draught of 5.55m, a gross tonnage of 15,598t and featured nine decks and ten lifeboats. The vessel was equipped with four 4,400kW diesel engines connected to two propeller shafts, and had an operational speed of 21k. The cruise ferry had capacity to accommodate 2,000 passengers and 460 cars.

SS Eastland

The SS Eastland disaster in July 1915 claimed more than 844 lives out of the 2,500 people onboard. The disaster occurred when the ship listed while being still tied to a dock in the Chicago River during preparations to cruise to Michigan City.

The probable causes of the disaster are believed to be the flaws in its design and construction, inadequacy of its ballast tanks and overloading. The accident occurred when the passengers embarked the ship. The ship initially listed to the starboard side and further to portside, throwing off passengers and trapping some in the interior cabins.

SS Eastland was owned by Michigan Transportation Company and operated by Chicago-South Haven Line. It was constructed by Jenks Ship Building Company, which specialised in constructing freighters but had no prior experience in construction of passenger vessels. The vessel was launched in May 1903.

The cruise ship had an overall length of 275m, width of 38m and gross tonnage of 1,961t. It was equipped with two triple expansion steam engines, four scotch boilers and two shafts. The vessel was designed for a top speed of 16.5k. It was equipped with 11 life boats and 37 life rafts.

Saint-Philibert Cruise Ship

Saint-Philibert was a twin screw-propelled small cruise ship that met with disaster in June 1931 resulting in the loss of about 500 lives, sparing just eight passengers while on its homeward run on the Loire Estuary in France.

The disaster was induced by harsh storms driving the passengers to take shelter behind the machinery casings, which caused the ship to list over. It was further struck by a wave causing her to sink. The ship, which carried approximately 500 people during the voyage, exceeded the normal carrying capacity by about 80%.

The inadequacy of the ship’s speed to face such waves, lack of coverings for shelter and absence of communication equipment further aggravated the situation. Besides, the captain and crew were considered unqualified.

Saint-Philibert cruise ship measured 32m in length and 6.4m in breadth, and had a draft of 2.74m and gross tonnage of 189t.

SS Admiral Nakhimov

The SS Admiral Nakhimov disaster in August 1986 resulted in the death of 423 people, mostly Ukranians, out of the 1,234 people onboard. The accident occurred in the Tsemes Bay near the port of Novorossiysk enroute Sochi.

The cruise ship collided with the large bulk carrier Pyotr Vasev at a speed of five knots, causing it to sink within a few minutes. The accident was caused by negligence of the captains of the two ships. The captain of Pyotr Vasev failed to heed the warning announced from SS Admiral Nakhimov, while the captain of Admiral Nakhimov was absent on the bridge at the time of the tragedy.

The passenger liner was originally named SS Berlin III and operated on the Crimean-Caucasian line. It was owned by Norddeutscher Lloyd and constructed by Bremer Vulkan.

SS Admiral Nakhimov had an overall length of 174m, beam of 21.02m and gross tonnage of 17,053t. It had a capacity to accommodate 1,125 passengers and 354 crew, and a cruise speed of 16k.

Aleksandr Suvorov

Aleksandr Suvorov, a river cruise ship of the Valerian Kuybyshev-class, met with disaster in June 1983 resulting in the death of 176 people out of the 415 people onboard, while cruising on the Volga-Don basin in Russia. The blame for the accident was placed on the captain who failed to prevent the accident and had not provided a proper order.

Just prior to the accident, an auction to be held at the cinema hall was announced, leading the passengers to the upper deck of the ship. The ship, which was cruising at a speed of about 13.5k at the time, crashed onto a bridge, failing to pass through the second span of the bridge. A freight train passing through the bridge was also affected by the crash, causing some cars to derail and fall on the ship.

Volga-Don Shipping Company was the operator of the ship at the time. Slovenské Lodenice constructed the vessel in Komárno, Czechoslovakia. The ship was restored after the accident and is currently operated by Vodohod.

Aleksander Suvorov has an overall length of 135.75m and width of 16.8m, and is comprised of four decks. It can accommodate 400 passengers and 83 crew, and runs on a 6CHRN36/45 (EG70 -5) diesel engine.

SS Morro Castle

The SS Morro Castle disaster in September 1934 resulted in the loss of more than 137 passengers and crew out of the 318 passengers and 240 crew onboard. The cruise ship was on its 174th return voyage to New York City from Havana.

The disaster was caused by a fire, which emanated from the cruise ship’s library and engulfed the entire ship. The fire was worsened by bad weather, inadequate crew and the ship’s design, which incorporated easily flammable interior materials. Just 12 lifeboats were launched out of the many lifeboats capable of rescuing 408 people.

The ship was owned by Agwi Navigation Co. and operated by Ward Line. It was constructed in 1930 at a cost of approximately $5m by Newport News Shipbuilding. The vessel completed her maiden voyage in August 1930 and served Ward Line along with its sister vessel SS Oriente for four years.

SS Morro Castle was 155m long, 21.6m wide and 11.9m deep, and had a capacity to carry 489 passengers and 240 crew. The steam turbo-electric liner was propelled by two turbines and sailed at a speed of 20k.

SS Andrea Doria

The SS Andrea Doria collided with the eastbound Swedish passenger liner Stockholm due to poor visibility caused by a thick fog. The disaster took place in July 1956 near the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, while cruising towards New York City resulting in the death of 52 people, while 1,660 people were rescued.

It is considered the world’s first major radar-assisted collision at sea, as the cause of the accident is assumed to be from the misreading of the radar. It was struck just aft and below the starboard bridge, and sank after 11 hours.

The ocean liner was owned by Italian Line and constructed by Ansaldo Shipyards of Genoa, Italy, at a cost of approximately $30m. It was launched in June 1951 and set out on its maiden voyage in January 1953.

SS Andrea Doria measured 212m in length, had a beam of 27m and a gross tonnage of 29,100t. It featured ten decks and was equipped with two steam turbines providing a top speed of 23k.

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Cruise Ship Accidents

Latest cruise ship accidents.

Disasters at sea: Six cruise mishaps in 2023

B ecause cruise vacations are easy to plan and relaxing, it's no wonder about 31.5 million people took them in 2023, according to data from Statista. 

Ranging from inconvenient to catastrophic, a tiny portion of these vacationers had their plans altered by unforeseen circumstances in 2023:

Cruises turn into ‘nightmares’ after marine life prevents entry into New Zealand

Pesky algae, barnacles, oysters and even snails prevented ships from entering New Zealand's waters three times last winter, leaving a cruise line's human passengers with significant changes to their plans. 

THIRD AUSTRALIAN CRUISE IN WEEKS TURNS INTO 'NIGHTMARE' AFTER FUNGUS OUTBREAK PREVENTS ENTRY INTO NEW ZEALAND

The Seven Seas Explorer of Australia's Regent Seven Seas Cruises fleet was forced to wait in open water for a cleaning crew to mitigate what New Zealand officials described as "higher than allowed levels of algae, barnacles, tube worms and potential oysters" clinging to ships, according to RNZ. 

After departing from Sydney Dec. 29, 2022, passengers expected to stop at eight ports and three fjords with just three days at sea. But an American passenger on the ship told Fox News Digital passengers instead spent 11 days at sea, only visiting one port.  

New Zealand officials blocked two additional ships from entering their waters due to excessive marine life on their hulls last winter. Viking Cruises ship Viking Orion was left stranded at sea for eight days in January for what the company told Fox News Digital was a "limited amount of standard marine growth." More than 900 passengers on that cruise were refunded for their trips, according to earlier reporting by Fox News Digital. 

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In late December 2022, a Princess Cruise Lines ship was held back by New Zealand officials for an excessive number of unexpected snail stowaways. Many passengers were dissatisfied with a $100 voucher and a voucher for 15% off future cruises they received along with an apology from the crew, per Reuters. 

Bahamas-bound passengers shocked after being rerouted to frigid locations

Passengers who had packed their shorts and sunglasses for a trip to the Bahamas were shocked after their ship was rerouted to Boston, Maine and Canada over "unreasonable" weather changes.

MSC Meraviglia passengers Lakeya Allen and Val Montgomery appeared on "Fox & Friends" and recalled their reaction to the unforeseen circumstances.

"They sent this itinerary a couple hours before we were getting ready to leave to board the plane," Allen said. "I have three children, and I would have to repack all three bags. And we actually have maybe six bags or so. So, it was just too much to change, and we just left." 

Initially, the ship was slated to make stops at Port Canaveral, Florida; Nassau, the Bahamas; and MSC's private Ocean Cay island.  

The company told Fox Business that "unseasonable and rapidly worsening weather ... would have made it impossible to safely reach the southern Atlantic Ocean from New York City," and the only other option would have been "to take the more extreme step of canceling the cruise — and thousands of people's vacations — outright."

CRUISE SHIP FIRE NEAR ALASKA PROMPTS DOZENS TO EVACUATE

Engine room fire prompts more than 50 passengers to evacuate Alaska cruise ship

All 51 passengers and 16 staff members were forced to suddenly abandon their sightseeing cruise through Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park when a fire started onboard in June.

UnCruise Adventures said the fire originated in the engine room and that all the affected passengers would be compensated. 

After evacuating the Wilderness Discoverer, the passengers were reportedly placed on another cruise in the area. 

Eleven crew members remained onboard the ship as it was towed to Ketchikan, the company said. 

Rough seas sent tables flying, left passengers ‘fearing for their lives’

Around 100 people were injured in November when their cruise ship entered rough seas off the coast of France.  

Treacherous conditions caused the Saga Cruises' Spirit of Discovery ship's automatic safety systems to activate. This made the vessel suddenly shift to one side before bringing it to a stop. 

VIDEO SHOWS HORRIFYING MOMENTS CRUISE SHIP PASSENGERS 'FEARED FOR THEIR LIVES': 'TABLES WERE FLYING'

Five people were transported to hospitals when the ship docked in Portsmouth, a Saga Cruises spokesperson said of the Nov. 4 incident. 

A thousand passengers aboard the ship were scheduled for a 14-day trip to the Canary Islands, but staff decided to prematurely head back to the United Kingdom after the unsettling incident. 

One passenger told the BBC the situation was dire. Another said people "feared for their lives."

"To say 'minor injuries' is an insult to the many horrific broken bones, pelvises, lacerations, stitches etc. that were caused [to] a very old passenger clientele," the passenger said of the official reaction from Saga Cruises. "People were writing texts to their loved ones in case we capsized."

Rogue wave blows out Norwegian cruise ship's ability to navigate

The MS Maud lost power after it was hit by a huge wave last Thursday as the ship was sailing toward Tilbury, England, from Florø, Norway.  

CRUISE SHIP FALL LEFT VIRGINIA WOMAN FEARING 'SHE WAS GOING TO DIE' IN FOREIGN HOSPITAL, DAUGHTER SAYS

Although none of its 266 passengers or 131 crew members were injured, crew members were forced to manually pilot the ship back to port with emergency propulsion systems, company HX told NBC News. 

The wave reportedly shattered windows on the ship's bridge, causing water to enter the vessel and short out electrical components, per Reuters. 

One passenger's Facebook video showed the view from her window on the vessel, in which the cruise ship creaked and bobbed amid the high waves. 

Two civilian support vessels aided the ship back to port in Bremerhaven, Germany,  the Danish Joint Rescue Coordination Center said in a statement Friday. 

American feared she would die in a foreign hospital after breaking hip on cruise ship

Denise Hammond, 64, fractured her hip and elbow in a fall on the Carnival Cruise Luminosa Oct. 4. 

After doctors on the vessel took X-rays of the woman and determined she would need additional care, she was left to wait as the ship made its way to its next stop. Four days later, Hammond was brought to Siloam Hospital in Manado, Indonesia. 

There, her daughter told Fox News Digital, "the hospital conditions were really atrocious," and doctors told Hammond they didn't have the proper equipment to treat her fractured bones. 

"They weren't doing any scans or blood tests, giving any kind of anticoagulants. ... We were concerned she was going to die in that hospital," Rachel Matthews said of her mother's ordeal. 

After receiving money via GoFundMe and working tirelessly with the U.S. embassy, the family finally hired a transport company to take Hammond to the nearest hospital that could properly treat her, located in Bangkok, Thailand.  

According to the family's GoFundMe, Hammond's surgeries there were a success. However, because of the nine days she was left untreated, Matthews told Fox News Digital she needed "much more intensive surgery" because her injuries were "healing back incorrectly."

Original article source: Disasters at sea: Six cruise mishaps in 2023

I work from a cruise ship for 3 months a year. Here's how I stay productive at sea.

• Walter Biscardi runs his travel business remotely from cruise ships for three months each year.
• He said WiFi reliability has improved, but video calls and finding power outlets can be challenging.
• Biscardi recommends Virgin Voyages for remote workers because of the spaces to work and the WiFi.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Walter Biscardi, a 59-year-old travel agent based in Orlando. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I used to work in film, television, documentary, and marketing, and I ran two creative agencies in Atlanta for 25 years.

A few years ago, my wife and I turned my second passion, travel, into " Where's Walter Travel ." We specialize in travel planning services for cruises , group vacations, theme park tours, and company retreats.

We live in an Orlando rental, but I run the travel-planning business from a cruise ship for three months out of the year.

We started taking advantage of our remote working situation after the pandemic

In a few short years of working on cruise ships, I've noticed that more and more people are starting to do the same thing.

We predominantly cruise the Caribbean. Last year, our three months were spread over six different trips on the Royal Caribbean , Oceania , Virgin Voyages , and Carnival cruise lines. If it were up to me, I'd be at sea for six months a year, but my wife prefers three.

This year, we'll be back on Virgin Voyages in June and on the Sun Princess in October. We're planning a few more, too.

WiFi speed and reliability onboard ships have been game-changers

I don't always look for speed but rather consistency and reliability.

Even though the WiFi is reliable on most ships , it's still not perfect, and you need to manage your expectations. The WiFi on ships is satellite-based, so the signal will be slower if there's a lot of cloud cover. Rain may also temporarily cut it out completely.

The WiFi signal in rooms can be weak. When I get on board, I walk around public places, look at the ceiling, and find the repeaters , which amplify the router's signal . I park myself under a repeater to work, so at least I know I'm getting the fastest signal.

Video calls can be dicey, but voice calls over WiFi work well

Most of my work is using emails, social media apps, and a web browser, so I don't tend to have problems. The upload speed is the most difficult thing about working on a cruise ship.

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Working from a cruise ship might not be for you if you're required to upload a video to YouTube or be on video for 100% of your Zoom calls. Zoom with video turned off works well. I post TikToks all day, but uploading to YouTube will fail almost every time.

Turn off your cell service on the ship, even if you have unlimited roaming overseas. Phones use satellite maritime cellular, and it's ridiculously expensive. I've heard of people who have come home with $1,000 cellular bills because they didn't turn off their roaming.

I can typically make most of my calls over WiFi, but you won't be able to on some ships. Texting from ship to land usually works well if you're using the same type of phone as the person you're messaging, but when you're texting cross-platform, sometimes it doesn't work.

Finding power outlets can be challenging

Typically, if you need to put in a full day of work connected to power, you need to stay in your room. One tip to finding power when you're looking around public areas is to see where they plug in the vacuum cleaners.

I strongly recommend bringing a powerboard with multiple USB sockets. I have one with 10 USB connections, so I can charge my phone, GoPro, and other devices simultaneously.

Virgin Voyages ships are the most friendly for remote workers

The galley on a Virgin Voyages ship is set up like a coffee shop, with easily accessible power and USB sockets at the table. There are dozens of outlets, as they're inviting people to bring their laptops and work from the ship.

I usually upgrade to the premium WiFi option, which can cost anywhere from $19 to $39 per day on most lines, but Virgin only charges $10 per day to upgrade.

I work in an office at home, so working on a cruise is a big change

I operate at sea as I do on land, with the same office hours available to my clients other than when I know we're going on an excursion.

Cruise ships are comparable to remote working spaces, but they offer so much more. On a cruise, almost everything is included: breakfast, lunch, dinner, coffee, entertainment, and most amenities.

If I want to take a break from work, I go to the pool. When I finish for the day, I'll go to the theater to see a show.

Meeting places are usually free on a cruise ship. Generally, all you have to do is reserve a conference room. AV facilities are usually included too, although you may have to pay a setup fee.

Remember to be respectful — many people are on board for a vacation. I've been out by the pool and seen people taking business calls on speakerphone, which is ridiculously annoying.

I suggest picking at least one port on every cruise and make it a 'ship day'

About 75% of people will get off the ship at any port, so staying on board feels like you have the whole place to yourself.

Activities like the pools will still be open, and the spas will often discount their services by 20-40% on port days.

Of course, I still recommend getting off and exploring as much as possible — that's what cruises are for.

Watch: Cruise ship captain breaks down 8 cruise ship disasters in movies and TV

• Main content

Governor warns of impending insurance crisis while approving Maui fires aid

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Gov. Josh Green on Thursday raised more fears of an insurance crisis in Hawaii and said with climate change increasing the risk of disaster, the state has to be prepared.

He said that could mean lawmakers must return to the capitol later this year.

The governor called back-to-back press conferences Thursday afternoon.

The first was to sign emergency Maui aid and to praise lawmakers for their work, the second to say they may have to come back to head off a potential insurance crisis.

“What you will hear in the coming weeks and months is that insurers will not insure states like Hawaii, where there is high risk,” Green said.

Green said state must essentially be financially prepared to insure itself against disaster.

He advocates for three pieces of legislation he proposed but were rejected by lawmakers in this session: a $25 climate fee on tourists, giving HECO the power to use money from customers to borrow with state-guaranteed bonds and a state insurance fund in case insurers stop serving some condominium and homeowners.

Maui Wildfires Disaster

“Without that, and having suffered a disaster of this magnitude, we could be behind all the other markets in the country and pay the worst rates pay the highest premiums,” Green said.

Green said he’s forming what he calls a Climate Advisory Team, headed by former Alexander and Baldwin CEO Chris Benjamin, to analyze the risk and the costs to mitigate it.

A&B is a major landowner, including on Maui where it is a player in the island’s debate over water rights.

Hawaii News Now asked if there was a conflict of interest to having someone tied to a major landowner as head of this team.

Group occupying Maui beach fronting luxury resorts packs up after vacation rental win

“No,” Green replied. “He retired and he’s actually been one of our climate advisors.”

The legislature adjourns tomorrow - but the Governor said if HECO destabilizes or insurers pull out of Hawaii, he may ask them to reconvene this year.

Green began the afternoon on a happier note, inviting Maui lawmakers and leadership to watch as he approved nearly $400 million in emergency funds.

The money mostly for housing fire survivors ineligible for federal aid and for the Ohana Fund, to which he said 55 families have turned for quick death or injury settlements.

The package, and another bill financing Maui costs in the upcoming fiscal year, do not include any direct aid to Maui County. House Finance Chair Rep. Kyle Yamashita, who represents part of Central Maui, said he determined that the county can handle its costs, with federal support, for now.

“I would rather they work within their means currently and we help them when they need it,” Yamashita said. “I think its going to get tighter for them in the future.”

Maui Mayor Richard Bissen had asked for $75 million in cash and $50 million from bonds which he said was needed to support housing and infrastructure repairs and improvements.

Green also congratulated lawmakers them for a multi-billion dollar income tax cut over the next seven years, which he said would save a family with income in the $80-90,000 range $4,000 in taxes when it is fully rolled out.

“It helps with their cost of living,” Green said. “Really what its meant to do is incentivize kamaaina to come home and that will stimulate our economy.”

Lawmakers who rejected the insurance fund and help to HECO said not enough is known about the costs or whether the risk is real. Green said that’s what his Climate Advisory Team will help determine.

Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.

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