cruise ship on fire 2022

Carnival cruise ship catches fire in Grand Turk

A Carnival cruise ship caught fire as it was docked in Grand Turk on Thursday morning, officials said. 

The fire, which broke out in the Carnival Freedom ship's funnel, was quickly extinguished as the ship was in Grand Turk, the capital island of the Turks and Caicos archipelago southeast of the Bahamas, a Carnival spokesperson said Thursday morning.

"All guests and crew are safe, and the ship’s guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore. We continue to assess the situation," a spokesperson said in a statement about the fire at around 8:45 a.m. ET.

Just before 11 a.m., passengers were still on shore at Grand Turk.

The ship had left Port Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida, on Monday for a five-day cruise, officials said.

It's not yet clear what caused the fire.

According to the marine tracking site CruiseMapper , the ship, which was built in 2007, is 948 feet long and can accommodate over 3,500 passengers. 

Marlene Lenthang is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.

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Breaking news, carnival cruise ship catches fire in turks and caicos.

Dramatic videos emerged on social media Thursday, showing flames and thick black smoke pouring out of the smokestack of a Carnival Cruise ship in the Turks and Caicos.

The cruise line confirmed that a part of Carnival Freedom caught fire after the ship docked at Grand Turk.

“Carnival Freedom’s emergency response team quickly activated and extinguished a fire inside the ship’s funnel while the ship was in Grand Turk,” company spokesperson Matt Lupoli told The Post in a statement. “All guests and crew are safe, and the ship’s guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore.”

No injuries were reported and the ship was not evacuated during the emergency. The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time.

Still photos and cellphone recordings that have been circulating on Twitter depicted smoke billowing from the right fin of the smokestack, painted red, white and blue, as reported by ClickOrlando.

Carnival Freedom set sail from Port Canaveral, Florida, on May 23 on a five-day cruise. It is scheduled to return Saturday.

Carnival Freedom was launched in 2007. It measures 952 feet in length, has 13 decks and can accommodate up to 2,980 passengers and 1,150 crew.

At the time of the fire, the vessel was carrying about 2,500 passengers and 1,100 crew members, according to the cruise line.

Passenger Jenny Fleming told Florida Today that she and her mother were drinking coffee on a balcony as Carnival Freedom was docking at Grand Turk at around 7:30 a.m. local time, when some people on an adjacent ship, Carnival Mardi Gras , alerted them to the fire.

“Mom runs inside and calls 911, and we were apparently the first to report it,” Fleming said.

Firefighters were able to get the blaze under control, and the passengers got the all-clear at around 8:40 a.m.

The fire was reported around the same time as another Carnival Cruise ship, Carnival Magic, docked in Norfolk, Virginia , after passengers began vomiting and complaining of nausea caused by a chemical smell.

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Carnival cruise ship catches fire for the second time in 2 years

By Emily Mae Czachor

Updated on: March 25, 2024 / 9:57 AM EDT / CBS News

A Carnival cruise ship will be out of commission for repairs for at least a week after its exhaust funnel caught fire and partially collapsed Saturday during a trip to the Bahamas. It marked the second time in just under two years that the funnel on this same ship, the Carnival Freedom, went up in flames while carrying passengers. 

What caused the most recent incident is still being investigated, according to the cruise company. No one on board the ship was injured, but Carnival said two fire crew members were treated for minor smoke inhalation.

The Carnival Freedom left from Port Canaveral, Florida, on Thursday and was supposed to travel for several days through the Bahamas before returning Monday to Port Canaveral. It was not immediately clear how many passengers and crew were on board the Freedom when the fire erupted, but the cruise ship can accommodate 2,980 guests and 1,150 crew members at capacity. CBS News contacted Carnival for more information.

The ship initially reported a fire at around 3:15 p.m. EDT on Saturday, on the port side of the ship's exhaust funnel as it sailed 20 miles off of the Bahamas' Eleuthera Island en route to Freeport, the company said in a statement. It had changed course to turn toward Freeport, at the northern tip of the island chain, after cancelling a stop farther south in Princess Cays because of bad weather. Eyewitnesses said that a lightning strike may have sparked the fire, a claim that Carnival said "is being investigated but cannot yet be confirmed."

A fire response team was activated quickly to put out the blaze once it broke out, as the Freedom's captain shifted the cruise liner toward the heavy rain nearby in hopes that would help. The fire was extinguished by 5:20 p.m., Carnival said, including flames from a portion of the funnel that broke off and fell onto one of the ship decks. Funnels are essentially used as smokestacks or chimneys to expel fumes and engine exhaust.

The U.S. Coast Guard said the Carnival Freedom crew was able to extinguish the fire Saturday without their help. They were aware of the fire, though, and issued a Captain of the Port order to the cruise ship before it was scheduled to enter Port Canaveral, Florida, on Monday. Captain of the Port orders are  broad mandates that the Marine Safety and Security Council describes as a tool granting Coast Guard crews "with operational controls over an emergent situation posing safety, security, or environmental risks."

 "We are continuing to monitor the situation," the Coast Guard said in a statement.

Although Carnival said at first that it did not expect the fire to impact trips on the Freedom cruise set to depart Port Canaveral on Monday and Friday, a technical assessment carried out in Freeport on Sunday revealed more significant damage to the ship than they originally thought. The damage would "require an immediate repair to stabilize the funnel" after disembarking guests in Port Canaveral on Monday, the company said in an updated statement following the assessment. 

"The funnel has been stabilized for the ship's return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests, and then it will go to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to begin the required repairs," Carnival said on Sunday. "We sincerely regret the impact to our embarking guests, as we know they have been looking forward to their spring break vacation." 

Both Carnival Freedom cruises scheduled for this week have been cancelled. Carnival said guests who had booked those cruises would receive full refunds and future cruise credits.

The Carnival Freedom's exhaust funnel last went up in flames less than two years ago, in May 2022. It was in Grand Turk at the time, during a planned five-day trip from Port Canaveral. The ship had 2,504 guests and 972 crew on board, Carnival said at the time. None of the passengers or crew were hurt.

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Emily Mae Czachor is a reporter and news editor at CBSNews.com. She covers breaking news, often focusing on crime and extreme weather. Emily Mae has previously written for outlets including the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed and Newsweek.

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Video shows scary moments after a cruise ship caught fire

Passengers aboard a cruise ship docked in Grand Turk Island got a surprise that wasn’t on the itinerary Thursday.

As photos and video taken aboard the Carnival Freedom illustrate, black smoke and flames poured out of the ship’s funnel as passengers donned life jackets and were evacuated from the vessel’s upper decks.  

"On Thursday morning while in port at Grand Turk, Carnival Freedom’s emergency response team quickly activated and extinguished a fire inside the ship’s funnel," said the cruise line in a statement . "All guests and crew are safe, and all other ship, hotel, and guest services, along with safety equipment are fully functioning."

According to the statement, most of the ship's 2,504 passengers were ashore at the time the fire broke out.

Plans were soon made to get all guests back to Port Canaveral in Florida, where they originally set sail from Monday for what was meant to be a 5-day cruise. But since Freedom won't be seaworthy in time for an already delayed departure, those arrangements required the cancellation of another Carnival cruise.

"Carnival Conquest’s next cruise, departing May 27 from Miami has been cancelled and that ship will be deployed to Grand Turk to transport Freedom guests back to Port Canaveral," the company explained. "Carnival Conquest will arrive to Grand Turk on Saturday, May 28 and guests aboard Carnival Freedom will transfer to Carnival Conquest for the voyage back to Port Canaveral, arriving on Monday, May 30."

Carnival Freedom's next scheduled cruise, originally planned for Saturday, has also been cancelled.

Repairs are set to begin on the ship's funnel after all passengers are off the ship.

The statement closed, noting, "Carnival apologized to all those guests who are impacted and offered special thanks to the crew who handled the situation on the ship effectively and according to safety protocols."

It remains unclear what caused the fire.

Ree Hines is a freelance writer and editor who covers pop culture, lifestyle stories and trending news. She’s also a soul-music loving, coffee-obsessed member of both Team Cat and Team Dog. Ree lives in Tampa, Florida, and is a regular contributor to TODAY.com.

clock This article was published more than  2 years ago

Carnival ship catches fire, leaving passengers awaiting rescue cruise

Carnival Freedom’s signature red, white and blue funnel was ablaze Thursday

A Carnival Cruise Line ship caught fire Thursday morning while docked in Grand Turk, leaving passengers stuck on the boat until another arrives on a rescue mission this weekend.

Carnival Freedom, which left Central Florida’s Port Canaveral on Monday for a five-day voyage, was in the Turks and Caicos cruise when the fire started in the ship’s signature red, white and blue funnel, which is shaped like a whale’s tail.

Carnival cruise on fire sheesh #carnivalfreedom #shiponfire #shipdown pic.twitter.com/n00l0HaFUV — That Panda Guy (@SantaPanda39) May 26, 2022

Passengers on other ships started posting photos and videos after 8 a.m. Carnival released a statement at 8:45 a.m. saying the ship’s emergency response team “quickly activated and extinguished a fire.” The Miami-based operator said everyone onboard — 2,504 guests and 972 crew — was safe. Passengers were allowed to leave the ship to spend the day in Grand Turk.

The cause of the blaze was not clear, and the cruise line did not say how much damage was caused.

But Carnival said in a statement Thursday afternoon that “all other ship, hotel, and guest services, along with safety equipment are fully functioning.” After an initial assessment of the damage, the company said the ship will go to Freeport, Bahamas, for repairs.

The blaze and its aftermath were a far cry from the infamous 2013 fire on the Carnival Triumph , which started in the engine room while the ship was at sea. In that case, the ship lost power and drifted. It became known as the “poop cruise” because of the waste disposal issues that result when a vessel with thousands of people onboard loses power.

#carnivalfreedom 👀 Not a way to wake up this morning at port aboard the #carnivalmardigras pic.twitter.com/aY0TPjfXvj — Justin Reavis (@reavis_justin88) May 26, 2022

The next Carnival Freedom cruise, scheduled for Saturday from Port Canaveral, has been canceled. Passengers will stay onboard while a sister ship, the Carnival Conquest, makes its way to Grand Turk from Miami to pick up passengers and bring them back to Port Canaveral on Monday. The next trip for that ship, scheduled to leave Friday, has also been canceled. The next Conquest voyage, which was intended to leave Miami on Monday, will instead depart Tuesday.

“Carnival apologized to all those guests who are impacted and offered special thanks to the crew who handled the situation on the ship effectively and according to safety protocols,” the company’s statement said.

The Freedom passengers’ situation is reminiscent of the experience guests had on the Norwegian Escape in March. In that incident, the ship ran aground and passengers ended up being flown home under sometimes-chaotic circumstances days later. Many who were stuck on land awaiting flights watched the ship depart without them.

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Carnival Freedom cruise ship catches fire near Bahamas

TAMPA, Fla. ( WFLA ) — A Carnival Cruise ship’s funnel caught on fire during their voyage near the Bahamas on Saturday.

Carnival said that at 3:15 p.m., the Carnival Freedom reported a fire on the port side from the ship’s exhaust funnel.

In a statement from Carnival, the team said, “The ship’s fire response team was quickly activated, and the ship’s captain also turned the vessel towards the heavy rain in the area to maximize the efforts to put out the flames. Eyewitnesses reported the possibility of a lightning strike and that is being investigated but cannot yet be confirmed.”

A portion of the funnel on the port side fell onto Deck 10.

Crews were able to extinguish the fire at 5:20 p.m. All aboard were asked to stay away from balconies and open decks for their safety.

Two crew members fighting the fire were treated for minor smoke inhalation, according to Carnival. As of this report, there are no reported injuries for guests.

The U.S. Coast Guard was alerted and has activated their response team. The cruise is expected to continue sailing to Freeport and arrive on Sunday morning.

The ship was around 20 miles from Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas, heading to Freeport. The ship departed from Port Canaveral on Thursday for a four-day trip.

Get daily updates on local news, weather and sports by signing up for the  WTAJ Newsletter .

On May 26, 2022, the same ship caught on fire while docked in Grand Turk . The inside of the Freedom’s funnel erupted in smoke and flames. The trip that was scheduled following the voyage had to be canceled.

The cruise does not expect the fire to impact the next voyage scheduled for Monday.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ - www.wtaj.com.

Passengers on board cruise ship that caught fire return to port

PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. (WESH) – Passengers on a Carnival Cruise ship that caught fire are now back in Port Canaveral, Florida.

Cindy Sumners said she remembers hearing the words no one would want to be woken up with on the cruise.

“We were in bed, and our room steward unlocked the door and screamed ‘Run to deck four,’” she said.

Sumners was one of more than 2,000 passengers on a Caribbean cruise aboard Carnival’s “Freedom.” She is now back where she started a week ago at Port Canaveral.

“Very glad to be home,” she said.

She and the other passengers said Carnival handled the emergency well.

When Sumners had to get off the ship in Grand Turk, where the fire broke out, she said she had a wonderful time.

The passengers from Freedom arrived at Port Canaveral Monday just after 7 a.m. They were supposed to be back Saturday, and they arrived on a different ship from the one they departed on.

Freedom is now at the Grand Bahama shipyard.

Brevard County resident Sammy Martin said she is also happy to be home and is relieved that all remained calm onboard as the fire first grew.

“But it was calm and we were already docked so we felt kind of safe, and transferring to the other ship was a smooth transition,” she said.

Freedom’s next three sailings through June 6 for the Port Canaveral-based ship have been canceled as the ship undergoes repairs.

Copyright 2022 WESH via CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.

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Passengers aboard carnival cruise ship that caught fire return to port canaveral, cruise line sends separate ship to bring passengers back to florida.

Mark Lehman , Reporter

PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. – Passengers of a Carnival cruise ship that caught fire last week returned Monday to Port Canaveral on a different ship.

The Carnival Freedom was docked Thursday in Grand Turk when flames erupted from the smokestack, according to the cruise line.

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No one was injured in the fire, which caused heavy damage to the ship’s funnel.

The Carnival Conquest was sent to retrieve the passengers aboard Freedom, which was evacuated after the fire.

Matt Lupoli, Carnival Cruise Line’s senior manager of public relations, released a statement on Thursday.

“Carnival Freedom’s emergency response team quickly activated and extinguished a fire inside the ship’s funnel while the ship was in Grand Turk,” Lupoli said. “All guests and crew are safe, and the ship’s guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore. We continue to assess the situation. Carnival Freedom left Port Canaveral on Monday on a five-day cruise.”

Pictures posted last week on Twitter show smoke and flames coming from the right fin of Freedom’s smokestack.

The ship was due to return to Port Canaveral on Saturday.

On Friday, Carnival said the May 28, June 2 and June 6 departures of the Carnival Freedom have been canceled.

After bringing passengers to Port Canaveral, Carnival Conquest will return to Miami and its departure will be delayed by one day to May 31, the cruise line said.

Carnival is giving passengers a $100 onboard credit, extending the beverage and Wi-Fi packages for those who bought them, and giving everyone a 50% future cruise credit. The company says it will also waive additional port parking fees and reimburse for independent air expenses up to $200 per person.

HAPPENING NOW: The Carnival Conquest is docking at Port Canaveral. Onboard are thousands of passengers who were on the Carnival Freedom when the ship’s funnel caught fire. pic.twitter.com/yGWaKhijfA — Mark Lehman (@MarkLehman6) May 30, 2022

Copyright 2022 by WKMG ClickOrlando - All rights reserved.

About the Author

Mark lehman.

Mark Lehman became a News 6 reporter in July 2014, but he's been a Central Florida journalist and part of the News 6 team for much longer. While most people are fast asleep in their bed, Mark starts his day overnight by searching for news on the streets of Central Florida.

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Carnival Cruise Passenger Captures Ship Fire on Video After Reports of Lightning Strike

The incident marks the second time in two years this particular ship has caught fire. It has caused the cancellation of two upcoming voyages

A Carnival cruise ship’s exhaust funnel caught fire on Saturday during a trip to the Bahamas, causing the company to cancel its next two voyages.

This is the second time in less than two years that the Carnival Freedom, based in Port Canaveral, Fla., has been impacted by a fire.

"Regrettably, the damage is more than we first thought, and will require an immediate repair to stabilize the funnel, resulting in the cancellation of the March 25 and March 29 cruises from Port Canaveral," Matt Lupoli, Carnival Cruise Line's senior manager of public relations, told Florida Today in a statement. "The funnel has been stabilized for the ship’s return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests, and then it will go to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to begin the required repairs."

PEOPLE has reached out to Carnival, but did not immediately hear back.

MALCOLM DENEMARK/FLORIDA TODAY / USA TODAY NETWORK (2)

While the cause of the fire is still being investigated, Carnival noted in a post on X Saturday that eyewitnesses reported the possibility of a lightning strike.

One of the cruise’s passengers, Heath Barnes, posted footage of the incident on Facebook Saturday afternoon.

In a statement to TMX, Barnes said it had been storming on and off and he was on one of the ship’s upper decks when he experienced “the loudest thunder and lightening [sic] I have ever heard.”

After he returned to his cabin for about 15 minutes, his nephew and two friends came to tell him the ship was on fire.

“I thought they were giving me a hard time but I got up and went out on the balcony and sure enough the flames and smoke was pouring out of the tail,” he continued, adding that he took the videos from his balcony before travelers were asked to stay indoors.

MALCOLM DENEMARK/FLORIDA TODAY / USA TODAY NETWORK

Carnival's brand ambassador John Heald addressed the incident on Facebook, acknowledging that those impacted by the cancellations “will be feeling very disappointed.” 

“And I want to add my apologies and my assurances that when you rebook using your full refund and your 100% future cruise credit, that the crew will be standing by to give you all the Fun you deserve,” he added.

In May 2022, the Carnival Freedom caught fire during a five-day cruise to Turks and Caicos.

At the time, Carnival Cruise Line verified that a fire broke out in the funnel of the ship while it was in Grand Turk.

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The company said its "emergency response team quickly activated and extinguished" the flames.

"All guests and crew are safe, and the ship's guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore," Carnival added.

The 948-foot Carnival Freedom, built in 2007, can hold just over 3,500 passengers, according to Cruise Mapper .

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Carnival Freedom cruise ship seen on fire at Grand Turk

The fire hit the starboard side of the ship’s funnel, or the 'whale's tail'.

Footage shows a Carnival Cruise ship on fire in Turks and Caicos

The Carnival Freedom was docking at Grand Turk Island Thursday morning when the fire erupted. The response team quickly extinguished the fire inside the ship's funnel. (Daniel Avellaneda / Bon Voyaged / TMX)

A video of raging fire onboard the Carnival Freedom has emerged Thursday as the cruise ship was docked at Grand Turk Island in Turks and Caicos. 

Footage posted to Twitter showed the starboard side of the ship’s funnel – referred to by some as the whale tail – consumed by flames and smoke. 

"Carnival Freedom’s emergency response team quickly activated and extinguished a fire inside the ship’s funnel while the ship was in Grand Turk ," the cruise line said in a statement. "All guests and crew are safe, and the ship’s guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore." 

Carnival added that the ship left Port Canaveral in Florida on Monday and that it will "continue to assess the situation." 

Guests sit on the deck of the Carnival Freedom cruise ship while docked at the port of Civitavecchia, Italy, in October 2007. (Victor Sokolowicz/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

CARNIVAL CEO ARNOLD DONALD STEPPING DOWN AUG. 1  

In the video, one passenger onboard another ship docked in the Grand Turk port can be heard saying, "Oh my God, that is wild!" 

A crowd had gathered on that ship to watch the fire unfold. 

The Carnival Freedom, shown here in Italy in 2007, caught fire in the Caribbean on Thursday, May 26. (Victor Sokolowicz/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

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The part of the ship that caught fire is designed to help direct the flow of exhaust gases away from the ship, according to the Crown Cruise Vacations website. 

Passengers board the Carnival Freedom in February 2013 in Key West, Fla. (KAREN BLEIER/AFP via Getty Images / Reuters)

The Carnival Freedom, in its current itinerary, is expected to return to Florida on Saturday. 

Fire destroys funnel on Carnival cruise ship; sailings canceled

Two additional sailings have been canceled following a fire that caused structural damage to the funnel on Carnival Cruise Line 's Carnival Freedom on May 26.

There were no injuries, but the incident prompted the line to cut the ship's last voyage short and cancel its May 28 departure. It has now canceled the subsequent June 2 and June 6 departures also.

Passengers were transferred to Carnival Conquest for their return home, allowing Carnival Freedom to sail to Freeport, Bahamas, where it is now docked for repairs. The move necessitated the cancellation of Carnival Conquest's May 27 sailing, too.

A statement from Carnival said that Carnival Freedom remained in Grand Turk, where the ship was docked when the fire broke out, until Carnival Conquest arrived on May 28. Carnival Freedom served as a floating hotel for the 2,504 passengers on its last cruise until they could be moved to Carnival Conquest, which then transported them back to Port Canaveral, their original port of disembarkation.

They reached Port Canaveral on May 30, two days later than previously scheduled.

The ship sailed to Freeport, Bahamas, after passengers disembarked; it is currently undergoing repairs there.

After disembarking passengers at Port Canaveral on May 30, it returned to its Miami homeport, where it began its May 30 itinerary on May 31, one day later than scheduled.

Several passengers, including Jim Edgar from Jacksonville, took to social media to share photos and videos of the incident.

"#carnivalfreedom we have a problem!" he posted early Thursday on Instagram.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Mxracer546 (@mxracer546)

In a statement, Carnival said the fire broke out in the ship's funnel — the iconic "whale tail" structure where ships emit exhaust — while the vessel was docked at Grand Turk, a port the line developed specifically for use by its passengers.

"All guests and crew are safe, and the ship's guests were cleared by local authorities to go ashore," the statement said. "We continue to assess the situation."

There has been no official word yet on what caused the blaze. The vessel was on a five-day sailing from Port Canaveral that departed on May 23.

Featured photo courtesy of Carnival Cruise Line.