‘Our stuff went flying.’ See the damage from ‘terrifying’ cruise traveling to SC port
A cruise ship hit a patch of rough waves, tossing souvenirs and flooding a hallway on its way to South Carolina, photos and videos show.
“It felt like the ship ran into a wall, all of our stuff went flying off the counters, baggage fell over and slid around,” passenger William B. Blackburn told CNN. “The wind was howling, all I could see outside was a solid wall of water spray and rain mixed.”
Online posts show the ship left with waterlogged floors, with items knocked from gift shop shelves.
The damage was reported over Memorial Day weekend aboard the Carnival Sunshine, which news outlets report was traveling from the Bahamas to a port in Charleston, South Carolina.
Though Carnival didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for additional information May 30, the company shared a statement with multiple news outlets.
“Carnival Sunshine’s return to Charleston was impacted by the weather and rough seas on Saturday,” May 27, the company told WCSC.
Though Carnival initially told WCSC the weather delayed the end of the cruise on May 28, it later told McClatchy News in an email that it ended May 27. The company didn’t respond to a request for clarification.
The rough conditions were reported after the National Weather Service warned the area off the South Carolina coast could experience “high surf, hazardous marine conditions and dangerous rip currents” on May 27. Carnival passenger Sharon Tutrone told WCBD that sailing through the rough conditions was “terrifying.”
“Everything in our cabin went flying off the table,” Tutrone told the TV station. “The wine glasses, the ice bucket, the TV completely turned around.”
Not everyone had the same sense of fear. Travel agency Vacations By Sharail, LLC took to Facebook to write that though the situation left the cruise with broken glass and sick passengers, the business felt everything would be OK.
You can see the damage in these other posts shared on social media:
This story was originally published May 30, 2023 at 10:11 AM with the headline "‘Our stuff went flying.’ See the damage from ‘terrifying’ cruise traveling to SC port."
