Passengers aboard the Carnival Triumph have described dwindling food supplies and overflowing toilets after a fire in the engine room left the ship drifting without power in the Gulf of Mexico. The vessel, carrying 3,143 passengers and 1,086 crew, lost propulsion and electricity early on Sunday, forcing it to drift for about 90 miles before tugboats intercepted it on Monday. It is expected to dock in Mobile, Alabama, on Thursday.
The lack of power has caused soaring temperatures in cabins, leading many to sleep on deck. Without electricity, the ship’s stabilisers were not functioning, causing a noticeable list that made walking difficult and exacerbated the problems with the lavatories. On Sunday, passengers were forced to use showers and plastic bags instead of toilets; by Monday, a few toilets had been restored but long queues remained.
Passenger Joy Dyer, in text messages to her husband Joel in Oklahoma, described the worsening conditions: “Ship has been leaning all day, but night winds made it lean more – it was very tilted to the side, hard to walk across.” She reported setting up makeshift camps with bathrobe belts and bent hangers. Another passenger’s daughter, Brytan Thomas, said water was seeping from walls and food and drink were severely limited.
Carnival Cruise Lines president Gerry Cahill confirmed the ship would arrive in Mobile on Thursday. “All of our guests are safe, and we’re doing everything we can to make them as comfortable as possible,” he said. He noted that emergency generators had maintained power and that auxiliary power had been gradually restored to operate some basic hotel functions, including limited toilets, elevators, and hot food service in the Lido dining area.
Cahill announced that all passengers would receive a full refund for the cruise, reimbursement of shipboard purchases, and a future cruise credit equal to the amount paid for this voyage. The Carnival Triumph has faced controversy before; it was seized in Texas in March 2012 after a lawsuit related to the Costa Concordia disaster, in which a woman died. The Costa Concordia partially sank off the coast of Italy in January 2012.
