Watch Live: Congressional Hearing on IRS Scandal

Live Now on TheBlaze Radio: ‘The Buck Sexton Show’

US

SOS Messages on Bed Sheets and a ‘Shanty Town’ on Deck — Pics of Stranded Carnival Cruise Passengers as Ship Limps to Ala.

Feb. 14, 2013 3:32pm
  • More than 4,000 passengers and crew on the Carnival cruise ship Triumph has been stranded since the engine room experienced a fire Sunday. 
  • The ship has drifted from the Gulf of Mexico to just off shore of Mobile, Ala., where tug boats are working to bring it in. 
  • Port officials believe the ship could make landfall late Feb. 14, but the rescue operation might be delayed after the line from one of the tug boats snapped Thursday afternoon. 
  • Passengers speaking by phone to news stations and to family have described the squalid conditions, which include raw sewage, waiting hours in line for food and sleeping on deck.
  • Even when passengers are brought to shore they will spend hours on buses before they are able to make it home.
Tug Boats Try to Bring Stranded Carnival Cruise Ship Into Alabama Port Thursday

Thursday afternoon when the ship was visible offshore of Alabama, the line of a tug boat snapped putting it adrift again and adding to delays to bring it to land. (Photo: AP/Dave Martin)

The stranded Carnival cruise ship and its more than 4,000 passengers enter day five without power after a fire in the engine room disabled the ship Sunday. Although the ship is currently being towed into an Alabama port and could arrive late Thursday or early Friday, conditions are still worsening.

Since the initial incident, many passengers have been living on deck in conditions that include feces and urine on the floor with some cases of food poisoning occurring. Recent footage of the ship shows passengers holding signs made with bedsheets and a deck that looked like “a shanty town, with sheets, almost like tents,” one father of a stranded passenger recounted.

Tug Boats Try to Bring Stranded Carnival Cruise Ship Into Alabama Port Thursday

Passengers hold sheets with messages to a passing helicopter. (Image: CNN screenshot)

The disabled ship is already having a rough go being pulled into Mobile, Ala., as the a tow line snapped, setting the ship adrift once again as crews worked to repair it.

Renee Shanar, of Houston, is on board the Carnival Triumph with her husband. She said passengers have food, but toilets aren’t flushing. Some older people have also fallen and injured themselves.

Tug Boats Try to Bring Stranded Carnival Cruise Ship Into Alabama Port Thursday

(Image: ABC News screenshot)

She said her husband is a heart patient and that they’ve been told they will be among the first to disembark, but she doesn’t believe the officials.

“They’ve been lying to us from the beginning,” she said.

Tug Boats Try to Bring Stranded Carnival Cruise Ship Into Alabama Port Thursday

(Image: KOCO screenshot via Daily Mail)

Thelbert Lanier was waiting at the Mobile port for his wife, who texted him early Thursday.

“Room smells like an outhouse. Cold water only, toilets haven’t work in 3 1/2 days. Happy Valentines Day!!! I love u & wish I was there,” she said in the text message, which was viewed by The Associated Press. “It’s 4:00 am. Can’t sleep…it’s cold & I’m starting to get sick.”

Tug Boats Try to Bring Stranded Carnival Cruise Ship Into Alabama Port Thursday

(Image: CNN screenshot via Daily Mail)

Listen to passenger Larry Poret talk to CNN about the horrible conditions with aerial footage of the ship:

The ship might make landfall in Alabama around 11 p.m. or midnight. But port officials have said it could be difficult.

Jimmy Lyons told the Associated Press port officials would prefer that the ship not come into the city during nighttime hours because there are tricky turns and cross currents in Mobile Bay. He described the bay as only 10 feet deep outside the ship channel.

Lyons says tying up the ship also will take longer than usual because the winches are inoperable and the thrusters that normally get it in and out of the berths aren’t working, either.

Here is footage of Thursday’s rescue from CNN (via WPIX):

Making it on dry land isn’t the end of an already long journey for passengers either.

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.

“I can’t imagine being on that ship this morning and then getting on a bus,” Kirk Hill, whose 30-year-old daughter is on the cruise, said to the Associated Press. “If I hit land in Mobile, you’d have a hard time getting me on a bus.”

Tug Boats Try to Bring Stranded Carnival Cruise Ship Into Alabama Port Thursday

In this handout from the U.S. Coast Guard the tugs Resolve Pioneer and Dabhol tow and steer the disabled 893-foot Carnival Triumph cruise ship on February 12, 2013, in the Gulf of Mexico. According to the Coast Guard the ship is enroute to Mobile, Alabama after an engine room fire left the ship without propulsion. (Photo: Chris Shivock/U.S. Coast Guard via Getty Images)

Passengers are supposed to get a full refund and discounts on future cruises, and Carnival announced Wednesday they would each get an additional $500 in compensation.

Check out this footage showing the ghostly outline of the ship as it is viewed from the Alabama coast:

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

(H/T: Daily Mail)

In CONTROL, Glenn Beck presents a passionate, fact-based case for guns that reveals why gun control isn’t really about controlling guns at all; it’s about controlling us. Find out more HERE.

Comments (67)

1 2
  • ybgrsfd
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 6:04pm

    Maybe if you plan to hold up a sign to say “we’re not ok” you shouldn’t stand next to it smiling.

    Report this comment

    ybgrsfd  
  • NovoCombo
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:43pm

    We’re going camping, with nobody to blame for anything but ourselves.

    Report this comment

    NovoCombo  
  • ezalbeht666
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:40pm

    I bet a lot of these people think they’re going to be able to sue well the jokes on them there’s a reason you can’t find a cruise ship that sails under an American flag (besides taxes) these people will have to go to Malta, Morocco or Senegal to sue and since the cruise lines pay of those courts these people will get zip, zero, nada. It pretty much say so on the back of the ticket.

    Report this comment

    ezalbeht666  
  • Misha
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:36pm

    And this is another reason I would not ever EVER go on a cruise. Blech.

    Report this comment

    Misha  
    • hatchetjob
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 6:04pm

      Same here, I have better things to do and to smell. Lol.

      Report this comment

      hatchetjob  
    • katamb55
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 7:58pm

      I went on one cruise in the early 1980s and never went again because you really feel stranded out there when all you can see is water – and nothing happened on my cruise. I know my sister loves cruises, but I hate that isolated feeling. So not getting word from the crew would just make it worse!

      Report this comment

      katamb55  
  • SolidusRaccoon
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:14pm

    “Let me tell you something about Hew-mons, nephew. They’re a wonderful, friendly people – as long as their bellies are full and their holosuites are working. But take away their creature comforts… deprive them of food, sleep, sonic showers… put their lives in jeopardy over an extended period of time… and those same friendly, intelligent, wonderful people will become as nasty and violent as the most bloodthirsty Klingon. You don’t believe me? Look at those faces, look at their eyes…” Quark

    Report this comment

    SolidusRaccoon  
  • hebashen
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:03pm

    You couldn’t pay me to go on a cruise. I’d be afraid to fall off or that the ship would sink. I guess the passengers should count themselves lucky that it didn’t sink. So their vacations didn’t go as planned, boo hoo, there are worse things than a bad vacation. It’s more of an inconvenience. I think Carnival is being reasonable in providing refunds, hotel rooms once docked, and an additional $500. Too bad there are people always willing to sue. (No, I don’t work for the cruise line.)

    Report this comment

    hebashen  
  • Caballosinnombre
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:02pm

    A taste of life on the old high seas, circa 1650. Arr mateys!!

    Report this comment

    Caballosinnombre  
    • OniKaze
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:12pm

      Except I don’t think that ANY of those people are risking Scurvy… :-)

      Report this comment

      OniKaze  
  • kadster01
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:59pm

    You couldn’t pay me to vacation on a floating prison. Yeah, yeah, I know….most times there is no problem, but I hear of too many times there are. It isn’t just extreme events like this one. It sounds like an unsanitary mess. You hear of people coming down with Norovirus all the time on these things because people are filthy.

    “Passengers are supposed to get a full refund and discounts on future cruises…”

    I’ll take the refund, but you can keep the discounts!

    Report this comment

    kadster01  
    • moonlight on the bay
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 10:22pm

      After the past stories about noroviruses and mechanical malfunctions during cruises, I swore I’d never go on one. Number one, I can’t afford it — never thought I’d be grateful to be too poor to afford something. After a nightmare like this one, I’d be surprised to hear of anyone taking up the cruise line of a free cruise in the future. NO THANKS. Hope they all get clean and feeling refreshed soon. I’d seal my luggage in a bag and get those items sanitized eventually. I don’t think I’d want to be trapped with 3,000 people on a floating vacation anyway.

      Report this comment

      moonlight on the bay  
  • KyleD
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:48pm

    You’d think someone who is holding up a “we r not ok” sign would not be smiling and laughing as she does so.

    Personally I don’t see this being so traumatizing…people have grown too soft. Go out camping every once in a while and this experience probably would have been lovely…you still have a toilet (garbage back under the seat and you’re fine)…you still have a bed…this is like camping in luxury…a log cabin or something. I wish I were on that cruise…all expenses paid and you get $500 at the end? Making money on a vacation!

    Report this comment

    KyleD  
    • OniKaze
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:11pm

      agreed, inconvenient, but doesn’t sound too bad (as you said, Camping is more like roughing it than this is…)… My question is: WHY is there urine and feces laying around?? I mean, the OCEAN IS RIGHT THERE….. You can’t miss it…. Walk in ANY direction for more than a few minutes, and you WILL find it..

      I mean, poo in a bag and dump overboard… Are you too good to add your poo to the fishes poo?? So you’d rather walk and sleep in it??

      Seriously, these people are whining and it could be WAY worse… The urine and poo problem is the passengers fault (not the ships lack of flushing toilets…), and didn’t have to be that way even with non-functioning toilets…

      The lack of hot food, may not be cool, but it is by no means a torturous condition that I hear people reporting…

      I understand that this IS NOT what a cruise is meant to be, but to be refunded, AND get an additional $500 PLUS future discounts, is a fair trade for some inconvenience.

      Report this comment

      OniKaze  
    • hatchetjob
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:50pm

      I asked my hubby why people would pee and poo all over the place, and he said because they are pissed at the cruise company. Smell ya later!

      Report this comment

      hatchetjob  
  • MCON29
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:39pm

    “They will each get an additional $500 compensation.”

    Some will be dumb enough to take this. Others will get much more when the law suit or settlement is complete.

    Report this comment

    MCON29  
    • ezalbeht666
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:48pm

      They’re going to get nothing. The cruise ship does not sail under an American flag so they can’t sue in an American court they can try but it’ll get tossed.

      Report this comment

      ezalbeht666  
  • Wes Hardin
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:28pm

    The cruise lines should sell the experience as a weight loss program. I’m sure that hundreds of those passengers were overweight. Maybe some of them lost a few pounds. Five days is about the maximum they should set because after that people will start eating each other like crazed zombies in search of fresh brains.

    Report this comment

    Wes Hardin  
  • Charleyhorse
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:28pm

    I don’t know anything about cruise ships, but why was it not possible to transfer passengers to another ship after the fire? Sorry if this is a stupid question but I honestly don’t know the answer. Thanks.

    Report this comment

    Charleyhorse  
    • AxelPhantom
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:37pm

      The ship has lifeboats if a direct transfer isn’t possible—but that would probably put them at risk for a wrongfull-death law suit if someone…I don’t know was drunk and fell out. I’m with you this seems like the worst possible way to handle it.

      Report this comment

      AxelPhantom  
    • 4xeverything
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 5:42pm

      Right…or just airlift them. It would have been much faster than sitting around doing nothing.

      Report this comment

      4xeverything  
    • Rijjka
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 7:15pm

      I’m with you on that, this appears to have been bungled quite badly. I mean, I guarantee you, given the option, a bunch of people would have signed a waiver or something, and popped in a life boat on day one.

      Unless those are just for show maybe?

      Report this comment

      Rijjka  
  • AxelPhantom
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:23pm

    We went on a cruise once and my husband thought I was a little nuts taking my B.O.B. complete with emergency rations, two man tent and water purifier among other things with us. After the incident in Italy and this one, he no longer thinks I was out of line….

    Report this comment

    AxelPhantom  
  • SamIamTwo
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:20pm

    The bloody tow rope broke…what a mess. And they say they won’t evacuate the ship cause it would be madness…yeah right. Like it’s not madness enough as it is…and the diseases that vessel is caring…they will need to be quarantined till they get a good bill of health.

    Carnival, an appropriate name, eh? Clowns.

    Report this comment

    SamIamTwo  
  • whatthecrazy
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:14pm

    I have sailed on this ship two times and both times there were no problems, at least for us.This makes me sad for these people and for the ship.Oh well i’ll always have my memories.

    Report this comment

    whatthecrazy  
    • thorkyl
      Posted on February 15, 2013 at 11:12am

      My wife and I got off of the Triumph the day this fateful voyage sailed.
      As soon as she completes her retrofit I would be back on her again.

      She is a nice ship, in overall very good condition.
      The crew was great and so was the entertainment.

      Everyone just has to remember, Murphy pokes his head in every once in a while and stirs the pot.

      Report this comment

      thorkyl  
  • honor007
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:56pm

    I cruised on this very same ship and it does not have a wide open space at the top (Lido Deck) like most ships. Very compacted. I wasn’t a fan. You can see by the number of suites that cover mostly half of it. The big flat wide open decks are better. This must have been just horrible for them.

    Report this comment

    honor007  
  • Rowgue
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:55pm

    Nobody on the ship knew how to flush a toilet manually? They’d rather just s***t on the floor than bother trying to figure out how the toilet actually works.

    Report this comment

    Rowgue  
  • Saff SGT
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:53pm

    im with you cavallo

    Report this comment

    Saff SGT  
  • EVANROOD
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:53pm

    CAV! Have you used the “have a tip?”, give us a scoop, portal at the bottom of the homie page?

    Report this comment

    EVANROOD  
    • Cavallo
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:54pm

      Yup. Sometimes they ignore it though :)

      Report this comment

      Cavallo  
    • Cavallo
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:58pm

      But yeah, it was the first thing I did before attaching a mention of it to all my comments.

      Report this comment

      Cavallo  
  • JackSprat
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:52pm

    Heaven forbid that cruise passengers ever experience discomfort. My sympathies go out to them, but on a grander scale of suffering theirs is of minor consequences. Soldiers in foxholes, sailors at battle stations know true discomfort, these folks will be just fine. Carnival Cruises will pay a very high price for it’s poor maintenance and filling berths in the future.

    Report this comment

    JackSprat  
    • Saff SGT
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:59pm

      yes ill bet the managers of this cruise ships are Liberals also thats why the screw ups like Obamas work

      Report this comment

      Saff SGT  
  • Saff SGT
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:50pm

    why are folks on vacation they should be on the phones trying to get Obama impeached for his crimes against America

    Report this comment

    Saff SGT  
  • SREGN
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:49pm

    They’re on the poop deck.

    Report this comment

    SREGN  
  • Jenny Lind
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:45pm

    Not to discount their ordeal, but do you think they will get in their own beds and be greatfull for the blessings they enjoy each day and be thankfull they came through this alive and OK? I wonder if for some it will be a lifechanger, and they will reflect on day to day things we so often take for granted? I was a very ignorant young woman when 6 days without electricity, stuck in the worst snow storm rural Va had seen in years. Hubby at sea, me and four kids, all teenagers, learned some very valuable life’s lessons. It was a serious/comic thing that changed ourlives.

    Report this comment

    Jenny Lind  
    • Rowgue
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:53pm

      Not likely. Most of them will probably be looking for a nice cash settlement from a lawsuit.

      Report this comment

      Rowgue  
  • Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:36pm

    Unfortunetely, they will find the conditions on the boat are better that the conditions in Alabama.

    Report this comment

    Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra  
  • GhostOfJefferson
    Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:36pm

    I think it would help, when you’re holding the “We’re Not OK” sign, if you weren’t smiling.

    This event is a wonderful teaching moment. This is what any society turns into once the comforts are gone. These people are the same ones that WILL turn into roving hordes of amoral savages the moment they are without electricity for a month or so. Count on it. Mr. and Ms. Soccermom will become Bob and Jane Looter in a heartbeat. Civilization is a veneer that is paper thin and easily removed.

    This is the warning folks, this is what happens, this is what the Administration is trying to cause, writ large. That is a large collapse, a huge disintegration of civilization, us in this kind of situation so that they can swoop in as the “saviors” and institute their designs on us. Pay heed.

    Report this comment

    GhostOfJefferson  
    • Cavallo
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:41pm

      That’s why I keep my powder dry and well stocked, so to speak. BTW, until the Blaze puts it up as a story, I’ll keep mentioning that the Dems in Missouri want to confiscate your weapons. Someone should ask Claire Bear if she supports the confiscation bill.

      Report this comment

      Cavallo  
    • Saff SGT
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 3:57pm

      this is what it will be like in 6 more months US will be at war with every one and everything. All of the infrastructure will crash and so wont most law. Cops will have to protect their family’s 1st and not worry about squad cars and infringing on the Bill of rights. They will be bust as I will trying to stay alive and protect what i have and familys

      Report this comment

      Saff SGT  
    • honor007
      Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:04pm

      They were smiling because at least they had the private big balcony’s to get away from the majority. Would have been really horrible to have been in an interior room. Ug.

      Report this comment

      honor007  
1 2

Sign In To Post Comments! Sign In

Sign Up For Our Newsletter!

Glenn Beck Radio

Listen to Glenn Beck 24/7 Listen Now
Restoring Love