Carnival cruise ship hits iceberg as worried passenger describes ‘Titanic moment’

A Carnival cruise ship was hit by an errant iceberg in what one terrified passenger described as a “Titanic moment.”

The ship, the Carnival Spirit, was sailing in Alaska’s Tracy Arm fjord last week when an iceberg grazed it.

As the collision unfolded, alarmed passenger Cassandra Goskie said: “If we die, it will be worth it, it’s a Titanic moment.”

The ship was stopped “for hours to assess the damage,” according to another passenger.

A Carnival spokesman said CNN“An assessment determined that there was no damage to the ship’s hull and the vessel continued its cruise with no impact on operations.”

He was able to complete his seven-day expedition on Tuesday, returning to Seattle, Washington, before embarking on a 14-day journey back to Alaska.

Although Alaska is a popular tourist destination, its icy waters have left many cruisers in difficult situations.

In 2022, Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Sun struck an iceberg while sailing in the state’s waters, causing damage to its starboard bow. Fortunately, there were no injuries.

Captains have already spoken of the difficulties of traveling through Alaska. Captain John Herring, a marine pilot from Southeast Alaska who boards ships in the region to help ensure a safe passage, told CNN in 2022: “Strong winds and currents make navigating the icy waters even more difficult.”

Despite these difficult conditions, “we very rarely, if ever, see any issues related to sailing in icy waters,” said cruise expert Chris Gray Faust, executive editor of Cruise Critic, an online cruise review site and community.

“Today’s cruise ships are built specifically to navigate in different waters,” Gray Faust told CNN Travel. “Those sailing in Alaska can not only handle icy waters, but they have experienced captains who are familiar with the landscape, so the reported incident did not cause any problems to the ship or navigation.”