Five Infamous Cruise Ship Catastrophes
Recently, a Hornblower harbor cruise ship crashed into San Diego’s Embarcadero. In total, seven individuals suffered minor injuries from the incident. Fire officials later determined a mechanical failure prevented the boat from stopping in time to avoid crashing. This was a very minor cruise ship incident, and fortunately, no one was fatally injured. The damage was minimal. However, there have been several disastrous cruise ship incidents in recent years.
Cruises can be extremely fun vacations. You get to enjoy the luxuries and comforts of a fine hotel while floating on the seas. However, if the power systems fail or other hazards occur, you can be left floating at the mercy of Mother Nature and the elements.
5. Carnival Splendor Disaster
In 2010, a Carnival cruise became an absolute nightmare for the passengers when an engine fire caused the power to fail during its first day out at sea. The lights, toilets, elevators, and refrigerators wound up failing, and the plumbing system was pushed to its limit. Many passengers became ill, and they had to subsist on rations flown in on Navy helicopters until the enormous cruise ship could be towed back to land.
4. Anthem of the Seas Weathers a Storm
The Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas encountered severe storm conditions shortly after leaving port in early 2016. It had to return to its home port, canceling the journey. The captain confined passengers to their quarters for their own safety while hurricane winds and enormous waves violently rocked the 168,666-ton vessel. Furniture was thrown, glassware and fixtures were destroyed, and the vessel flooded in some places. Amazingly, out of the more than 4,500 passengers, only four were injured.
3. Costa Concordia Runs Aground
The luxury cruise ship Costa Concordia ran into the shore of the Tuscan coast in 2012, forcing 4,200 passengers to evacuate. After it hit the shore, the enormous ship fell over on its side, killing 32 people and injuring another 64. The Costa Concordia was declared a total loss, and it took over a year for the ship to be hauled away and scrapped.
2. Seabourn Spirits Survives Pirate Attack
When you hear the word “pirate” you may think of three-point hats, cutlasses, and flintlock pistols. But modern pirates have upgraded their arsenals to include fully automatic assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
In 2005, the Seabourn Spirits cruise ship was attacked by Somali pirates. They fired on it with RPGs and machine gun fire. Miraculously, shrapnel wounded only one crew member, and none of the 300 passengers were injured; the captain changed course and escape. The Seabourn Spirits arrived safely in the Seychelles for repairs.
1. RMS Titanic
Arguably the most famous cruise ship disaster in history, the 1912 sinking of the RMS Titanic resulted in the deaths of 1,500 of the 2,200 passengers and crew members. The Titanic left on April 10, 1912 for its maiden voyage and sunk to the bottom of the Northern Atlantic Ocean. The wreckage would remain undisturbed until September 1, 1985, when a team of French and American scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution discovered it. The story of the RMS Titanic inspired the 1997 film Titanic, directed by James Cameron.
Modern cruise ships rival the size and carrying capacity of military aircraft carriers. While cruises offer a unique, adventurous getaway for vacationers, anyone thinking about a cruise needs to understand the risks inherit to traveling on a several hundred-thousand ton ship hundreds of miles out at sea.
A stranded ship can quickly become a nightmare, and a rescue mission may take several days. Luckily, modern technology allows cruise ship captains to carefully monitor weather conditions and stay in touch with land, but you should always understand the risk you assume by attending a cruise.