Halloween Horror Cruise Turns Scary for Passengers

By The Maritime Executive 11-03-2014 10:17:00

On October 31st, 2014, Bahamas Celebration struck an uncharted object off Freeport, opening up a hole in the port side. She began to list about 10 degrees, and reportedly grounded to prevent further sinking. All passengers and crew were evacuated and no one was injured.

Celebration Cruise Line said in a statement that passengers were told to put on life vests and the ship returned to port after the boat hit something while leaving Grand Bahamas Island around 9 p.m. Friday,

"No passengers were ever in any danger, and everything was handled in an organized and efficient way by ship, corporate and Bahamian personnel," the cruise line said. Ultimately, passengers were housed in resorts on the island. They concluded: "Our focus at this time (is) taking care of our passengers who were on the ship or had planned to be on the ship over the next few days."

Several passengers who'd been onboard the vessel were hoping for a refund, or a more detailed explanation of what happened or more of a response from the cruise company, reports CNN.

Bimini SuperFast helped return the cruise ship's 960 stranded costume-clad passengers and crew to Port Miami on Saturday evening.

Two Celebration cruises scheduled for Saturday and Monday were canceled while damage to the boat is assessed.

Meanwhile, passengers expressed their fears after feeling the initial jolt, and being stranded on the ship without power. At first, some thought it was a Halloween spoof, but panic kicked in once the alarms sounded. Passengers complained about being without food, water, and of the general disorganization of the situation.