Carnival Ship Stranded in Gulf of Mexico

[dizzychick]

Wow, I am so sorry to hear all of these horror stories about Carnival cruises. I will always have a great fondness in my heart for the Carnival cruise ship Sensation. I lived on that ship for 6 months with my late fiance when the cruise ship was used to house essential personnel (firefighters, police, emergency workers, etc) after hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. The staff was wonderful to us and our cabin steward Hector was just awesome.

Our cabin attentent was great too he was from the phillipines and he told me they only paid him 75 a month plus he never gets to see his family then a lovely 31 yr old russian came in with coffe for me she said they were sexually harrasing her and they charge so much per minute to use the phone/net that she couldnt afford to call home. She was stuck there for 8 months I think no way to get off. She was almost in tears telling us this story I was so worried about her, she barely spoke english and she said she would tell those other male owrkers " no touch" they were assaulting her. If the truth be known no one would ever go on a cruise again but if all goes well no accidents or crimes it is a site to behold. The ship we were on was old but very well kept.

 

[dizzychick]

my hubby just came in here and told me those people are in danger cause that canal is 30 miles long and shallow on each side, he said if he drifts to the side it could list over and there will be another Const Conordia which BTW is owned by Carnival Cruise Lines!

God Help Them

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

What a holy frickin' mess! Tugboat lines broke and will now cause further delay in arrival in port at Mobile. Callers to CNN are reporting that they were not informed that the tugboat line snapped. The ship is now drifting back out to sea with ETA already having been delayed by several hours from what passengers were originally told. :furious:

There was discussion about why the lifeboats could not be used to get people ashore. The sea conditions are too difficult to attempt transferring passengers to these vessels. I can attest to this: The lifeboats are horrible when tendering ashore when the water is even a little choppy. These small watercraft have no ballast and bounce around on top the water like a toy boat in a Jacuzzi tub Even when passengers are tendered ashore, if the water looks choppy to me, I prefer to stay onboard if it's a port that I've visited previously.

CNN reporting that the tug line has been replaced and that ship should start moving forward again.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Coast Guard: Cruise ship stopped; towline broken

By JAY REEVES and RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI, AP
35 minutes ago

MOBILE, Ala. — The long, slow journey back to port for a crippled Carnival cruise ship and its miserable passengers suffered another setback Thursday when a tow line snapped, setting the vessel adrift once again.

A clearer picture of the scene aboard the ship began to emerge as passengers who have been mostly out cellphone reach described overflowing toilets, sewage backed up in showers, scarce food and people getting sick. What began as a four-day voyage in the Gulf of Mexico has turned into a vacation nightmare, not at all the luxury cruise touted in brochures.

Passengers were expected to make it to shore Thursday night at the earliest — only to then face an hours-long bus ride or other travel hassles to finally get back home. Frustrations with the cruise line were simmering on and off the ship, as passengers and their relatives questioned why it has taken so long to get back to dry land after an engine-room fire disabled the ship Sunday...

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/news-general/20130213/US.Disabled.Cruise.Ship/

 

[keeponsearching]

Discount on future cruises :/ At least they will get a refund.. Plus 500 dollars. What a nightmare. I can't even imagine having kids on a cruise with something like this happening.

 

[Show Me]

Discount on future cruises :/ At least they will get a refund.. Plus 500 dollars. What a nightmare. I can't even imagine having kids on a cruise with something like this happening.

It's the Survivor Boat....you get a refund if you survive the cruise.

This is terrible....I can't imagine such awful horrible conditions the passengers are going through. Saved up their money for a fantastic cruise only to end up on the Cruise From Hell.

No way DH and I are going on a cruise....I'd rather be tent camping in freezing weather than on cruise like that.

 

[redheadedgal]

pics from passengers: http://interactives.fox10tv.com/pho...nditions/first-look-into-triumphs-conditions/


carnival's comments: https://www.facebook.com/#!/Carnival?fref=ts

 

[michmi]

pics from passengers: http://interactives.fox10tv.com/pho...nditions/first-look-into-triumphs-conditions/


carnival's commets: https://www.facebook.com/#!/Carnival?fref=ts

Yikes, NO THANKS!

 

[Sulamith]

After days stranded at sea, now comes the bus ride

By JAY REEVES and RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI, AP
3 hours ago

MOBILE, Ala. — After days stranded in the Gulf of Mexico in conditions some have described as dismal, most passengers aboard the disabled Carnival Triumph can look forward to an hours-long bus ride Thursday after they reach dry land.

The company announced its plan for passengers as the Triumph was being towed to a port in Mobile, Ala., with more than 4,000 people on board, some of whom have complained to relatives that they have limited access to food and bathrooms.

The passengers' stay in Alabama will be short. Carnival said in a statement late Wednesday that passengers were being given the option of boarding buses directly to Galveston, Texas, or Houston — a roughly seven-hour drive — or taking a two-hour bus ride to New Orleans, where the company said it booked 1,500 hotel rooms. Those staying in New Orleans will be flown Friday to Houston. Carnival said it will cover all the transportation costs...

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/news-national/20130211/US.Disabled.Cruise.Ship/

Silly me, I imagined the poor passengers would be taken straight away to a hotel IN Mobile! Maybe there are not enough available rooms in Mobile. The bus trips sound just terrible. I bet some people rent cars and drive themselves to wherever they want to go. I could not be captive on a bus. Bet Carnival won't reimburse the passengers for their rental cars and hotel rooms they book on their own.

 

[redheadedgal]

Maybe there are not enough available rooms in Mobile.

from the link in post you copied:

Mobile Mayor Sam Jones questioned the plan to bus passengers to other cities late Wednesday, saying the city has more than enough hotel rooms to accommodate passengers and its two airports are near the cruise terminal.

 

[Nova]

Thank you, . I don't even begin to understand the engineering involved, but your description really helps!

I knew it wasn't a perfect analogy between a modern cruise ship and a battleship or carrier from 65 years ago. And I understand that military craft are built to withstand attacks a cruise ship isn't likely to face.

My point was merely that it IS possible to foresee problems at sea and to establish recovery procedures. Fires at sea seem to be relatively common. Carnival didn't have to wait until disaster struck and then try to improvise.

 

[michmi]

Our cabin attentent was great too he was from the phillipines and he told me they only paid him 75 a month plus he never gets to see his family then a lovely 31 yr old russian came in with coffe for me she said they were sexually harrasing her and they charge so much per minute to use the phone/net that she couldnt afford to call home. She was stuck there for 8 months I think no way to get off. She was almost in tears telling us this story I was so worried about her, she barely spoke english and she said she would tell those other male owrkers " no touch" they were assaulting her. If the truth be known no one would ever go on a cruise again but if all goes well no accidents or crimes it is a site to behold. The ship we were on was old but very well kept.

My cousin was a musician aboard a Carnival ship a few years ago and he said they made them play until their fingers were falling off, and then after they were done they were working in the kitchen! Paid a pittance, slept in rickety bunk beds (he's a US citizen but of course the ship doesn't fly under the US flag, don't have to follow US laws on employment). There was also a rape while he was there---it took ONE round trip and my cousin decided the "indentured sea servitude" was not for him...lol

 

[michmi]

from the link in post you copied:

Mobile Mayor Sam Jones questioned the plan to bus passengers to other cities late Wednesday, saying the city has more than enough hotel rooms to accommodate passengers and its two airports are near the cruise terminal.

Good! I'm glad the mayor is speaking up! That's the least Carnival can do, it benefits the passengers (they can at least get a proper shower) and benefits the city.

I wondered why they weren't flying people out of Mobile. It has a perfectly good airport served by all the major domestic airlines.

Carnival is SO cheap!

 

[daisy7]

from the link in post you copied:

Mobile Mayor Sam Jones questioned the plan to bus passengers to other cities late Wednesday, saying the city has more than enough hotel rooms to accommodate passengers and its two airports are near the cruise terminal.

Carnival used to depart out of the Mobile port and ended that a few years ago. It's ironic that they chose to bring the ship to Mobile. And, IMO, it's a huge slap in the face to Mobile, who has gone above and beyond to help and has the capacity to do so, to then bus these passengers to hotels outside of Mobile, when Mobile could definitely benefit from the revenue.

On October 22, 2011 the Mobile Alabama Cruise Terminal will say goodbye to a wonderful 7 year partnership with Carnival Cruise Lines. In 2010, the Carnival Fantasy and the Elation averaged 2400 passengers from a wide range of states.

(snip)

http://www.shipmobile.com/about.php

 

[Pensfan]

This certainly gives new meaning to the term "Poop Deck", eh?

 

[Gypsy Road]

It's amazing to me how everyone's experience and attitude seems to be different. Some make the best of a bad situation and some make the worst of a bad situation. I don't know how I would handle being on a ship that was such a mess, but it is refreshing to hear how some of the Carnival passengers are taking this in stride. I've heard mostly good things about the crew and how they handled the situation - and that part is good to hear. I can't imagine being an employee trapped on a broken down ship that had over 3,000 very unhappy passengers on it! I yi yi!

 

[redheadedgal]

according to the fb page, they are FINALLY docked !!

 

[Peliman]

The disabled cruise ship docks in Alabama on CNN live. Getting ready to disembark.

Whew! The reaction interviews should be interesting.

Live Link

http://live.cnn.com/

 

[bessie]

http://blog.al.com/live/2013/02/carnival_triumph_arrives_in_mo.html

The cnn feed shows them disembarking now. Are they really going to put those poor people on buses to New Orleans now? It'll be after 1am by the time they get here.

I do have to say that my husband and I enjoyed two wonderful cruises aboard the Triumph within the past four years. Not one complaint among us.

 

[michmi]

I've got CNN on, interesting that Carnival was wanting people to sign waivers saying if they talked to the press they wouldn't get their refund....

Very typical. Universally these passengers have wonderful things to say about the crew, how gracious they were. A bright spot in a really awful place.

I'm wondering if Carnival wanted to bus them to Houston because they pay a pittance to put up passengers and they knew they'd have to pay more in Mobile. I hope they do the right thing and put them up in Mobile.

These 2 ladies were saying bathrooms full of urine, toxic environment. I bet Carnival sends that one lady a bill for the robe she had to take to be warm.