Miami-Dade

Carnival cruise ship in Gulf of Mexico to be towed after engine fire

 
 

The cruise ship Carnival Triumph.
 Photo by Andy Newman/Carnival Cruise Lines.
The cruise ship Carnival Triumph. Photo by Andy Newman/Carnival Cruise Lines.
Andy Newman / Carnival Cruise Lines

A Carnival cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico with 3,000 passengers onboard will be towed to port after an engine fire Sunday morning left it drifting, a cruise line official said.

The fire occurred in the engine room of the Carnival Triumph, which is owned by the Miami-based company.

The fire left the ship with no propulsion, the cruise line says, CNN reported.

There were no injuries reported. Passengers and crew have food, water and electricity from generators. Another Carnival ship, the Elation, is transferring more food and drinks onto the Triumph

The cruise ship was in waters off the Yucatan Peninsula, heading back to Galveston, Texas, when the fire started, said Astevia Gonzalez from the Carnival Cruises family support team.

The ship's automatic fire extinguishing system kicked in and soon contained the blaze.

The fire still left the ship passengers and 1,000 crew members drifting about 150 miles off the Mexican coast, the cruise line said in a statement.

"The ship's technical crew has determined the vessel will need to be towed to port," Carnival said Sunday night. "A tugboat is en route to the ship's location and will tow the vessel to Progreso, Mexico, which is the closest port."

According to Gonzalez, the ship is expected to arrive in port Wednesday.

After they are towed to Progreso, those aboard the Carnival Triumph will be flown back to the United States at no cost to them, the cruise line said.

They will also get a full refund, credit that can be used toward a future trip and reimbursement for all expenses — except casino and gift shop purchases — for their current trip.

The vessel's next two departures, scheduled for Monday and Saturday, have been canceled. Those slated to be on those trips will get full refunds and discounts toward future cruises, the cruise line said.

Read more Miami-Dade stories from the Miami Herald

  • Friends and Neighbors

    Charity pays for glasses for underprivileged kids

    The Heiken Children’s Vision Program provides free comprehensive eye examination and glasses when prescribed to low-income school children who fail their vision screening and have no insurance or other resources for eye care. The program was started in 1992, and since then, 75,000 children have received exams with 83 percent needing and receiving free eyeglasses.

  •  

High school senior, Nicole Muxo, received a surprise when Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade arrived at her prom on Friday, May 17.

    A PROM NIGHT TO REMEMBER

    Dwyane Wade surprises Miami teen at prom

    Persistence paid off for an Archbishop Coleman Carroll senior. She asked (and asked) and ultimately received Dwyane Wade as her prom date.

  •  

Det. Eutimio Cepero stands before cameraman from A&E's popular "The First 48" show.

    REALITY TV

    Miami police parts ways with popular “First 48” cable show

    The popular television show has helped solve Miami homicides, but critics say the cameras can be a distraction to investigators and the show seems to focus more on African-American communities.

Miami Herald

Join the
Discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere on the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

The Miami Herald uses Facebook's commenting system. You need to log in with a Facebook account in order to comment. If you have questions about commenting with your Facebook account, click here.

Have a news tip? You can send it anonymously. Click here to send us your tip - or - consider joining the Public Insight Network and become a source for The Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald.

Hide Comments

This affects comments on all stories.

Cancel OK

  • Videos

  • Quick Job Search

Enter Keyword(s) Enter City Select a State Select a Category