Carnival Cruise Lines announced today that it has implemented a program to significantly enhance emergency power capabilities, introduce new fire safety technology, and improve the level of operating redundancies across its entire 24-ship fleet. This enhancement program will cost more than $300 million, and rapid upgrades have already begun. The actions by Carnival Cruise Lines will expand the availability of hotel services for the comfort of its guests in the rare instance of a shipboard event that involves the loss of main power. In addition, the plan will reinforce key shipboard operating systems to further prevent a potential loss of primary power. The improvement plan is the result of a comprehensive operational review, overseen by parent company Carnival Corporation & plc, initiated immediately after the Carnival Triumph fire in February 2013.

“All of Carnival Cruise Lines’ ships operate safely today. Each vessel already has effective systems in place to prevent, detect and respond to emergency situations, and we meet or exceed all regulatory requirements,” said Gerry Cahill, president and CEO of Carnival Cruise Lines. “However, by applying lessons learned through our fleet-wide operational review after the Carnival Triumph fire and by taking advantage of new technologies, we have identified areas for enhancement across our operations. These initiatives reflect our commitment to safe and reliable operations and an enjoyable cruising experience for the nearly 4.5 million guests who sail with Carnival Cruise Lines each year.”

• Increased Emergency Generator Power

The initial increase in emergency generator power across Carnival Cruise Lines’ fleet of 24 ships will be completed over the next several months. An additional emergency generator will be installed on each vessel to provide for 100 percent of stateroom and public toilets, fresh water and elevators in the unlikely event of a loss of main power. The work is already underway and will not affect scheduled itineraries. Upon completion of the initial phase, the line will install a second permanent back-up power system on each ship to provide an even greater level of hotel and guest services if main power is lost. These additional services will include expanded cooking facilities and cold food storage, as well as internet and telephone communications.
“Although every ship in our fleet currently has emergency back-up power which is designed to enable the continuous operation of safety equipment and some hotel services, it is our intent to significantly bolster that back-up power to support the core hotel services. With this improvement, we will better ensure guest comfort in the rare instance of a loss of main power,” said Cahill.

• Increased Fire Prevention, Detection and Suppression Systems

The company will also make additional investments in the newest and most technically advanced fire prevention, detection and suppression systems. This includes upgrading the existing water mist fire suppression systems already in place on Carnival vessels to the newest generation. When triggered, this high-pressure water mist system instantly creates a larger and thicker blanket of water droplets than the present system. As the water droplets evaporate, the system also rapidly cools any hot areas to prevent the possibility of a fire restarting.
“On Carnival Triumph, our fire systems were effective and our teams performed well in controlling and extinguishing the fire. However, we want to take advantage of the latest and most-advanced generation of fire safety systems to enhance the current extensive capabilities across our fleet,” added Cahill.

• Enhanced Operating Redundancies

All of Carnival Cruise Lines ships have two separate, redundant engine rooms. The company’s operational review has identified modifications to further decrease the likelihood of losing propulsion or primary power, as happened on Carnival Triumph in February. The modifications will include a reconfiguration of certain engine-related electrical components. On ships where these enhancements will be made, the design and fabrication of specialized components will require longer lead times for completion, in contrast to the immediate upgrades to back-up emergency power and other systems.
Last month, Carnival Cruise Lines announced results from the first phase of the company’s operational review, specifically addressing Carnival Triumph and Carnival Sunshine, both of which are currently out of service. The plan for each of these ships addresses each of the three areas outlined above.

• Company to Form New Safety & Reliability Review Board

Carnival Cruise Lines also announced the formation of a Safety & Reliability Review Board comprised of outside experts with significant expertise in marine and occupational safety, reliability and maintenance, marine regulatory compliance and quality control/assurance. The company already receives oversight and input from outside regulatory authorities and industry experts. The new Review Board will provide an additional, independent third-party perspective, drawing from deep experience across a number of relevant fields and organizations. The Review Board will be comprised of five external members. Active searches are underway for candidates with previous experience in organizations such as the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and National Transportation Safety Board, as well as leading airlines and equipment manufacturers. “The formation of our Safety & Reliability Review Board is an integral part of how Carnival Cruise Lines will drive continuous improvement across our fleet. We will be responsive to its recommendations,” said Cahill.

• Carnival Corporation & plc Fleet Enhancements

Parent company Carnival Corporation & plc previously announced a corporate-wide operational review of all 10 of its brands and 101 ships. The review process will include learnings from the recent incidents that can be applied across the corporation’s fleet. Carnival Corporation & plc has confirmed that, based on the results of the ongoing review, the latest versions of technologies and enhancements will also be implemented on the remainder of the fleet where they are not already present. The overall program of enhancements across the corporation’s 101-ship fleet, including Carnival Cruise Lines’ ships, is expected to cost between $600 and $700 million. “Our fleet already operates at a high standard of reliability. The investments announced today for Carnival Cruise Lines, and those we will continue to make, will reinforce our ability to consistently deliver the customer experience that 10 million people every year have come to expect from us across our fleet of 101 ships. Absolutely nothing is more important than the safety and comfort of our guests and crew, and we will use the full resources of our company to meet that commitment,” said Micky Arison, Chairman and CEO of Carnival Corporation & plc. Initial implementation of the upgrades to the Carnival Corporation & plc fleet will take place during the next several months. Each class of ship is different and often systems differ on ships within a class, so the enhancements will be tailored to each vessel. All findings from the operational review will be shared with Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) as part of the industry-wide operational review announced in March.

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Media outlets in Mobile, Alabama are reporting that the Carnival Triumph has broken loose from its dock at the BAE Ship Systems yard and has drifted down river. Triumph has been at the BAE shipyard for almost two months while undergoing repairs after an engine room fire knocked out power on February 14.

According to reports the ship has sustained some damage. Most notably a large hole on the right side of the stern in the dining room area. Weather may have played a factor in the ship breaking loose as strong storms and high winds passed through the Mobile area on Wednesday.

Stay tuned for more information.

Reported by © www.expertcruiser.com – Your online consumer guide for cruise travel and information.

Another problem for Carnival Cruise Lines as one of its ships has developed another engine problem mid-cruise. The Port Canaveral based Carnival Dream, one of the line’s newer and largest ships, was on the return leg of a seven-day Eastern Caribbean sailing is now docked in St. Maarten. Passengers have reported to various media outlets that toilets were overflowing and elevators were shut down and the overall atmosphere on board was very bad as little information was being relayed by the crew. A U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson stated Thursday that Carnival Dream’s captain notified the agency of possible trouble with the ship’s propulsion system. The ship’s emergency generator, which powers propulsion for ship, has reportedly failed. The Coast Guard said they have been reassured by the ship’s captain that their main generator and sewage systems are unaffected by the failure.

Carnival issued a statement stating, “The Carnival Dream has a technical issue which our engineering team is currently working on. The ship is at dock in St. Maarten. At no time did the ship lose power but there were periodic interruptions to elevators and toilets for a few hours last night. The statement added “The ship has full power but is still at dock while personnel continue to work on the technical issue.” Carnival said they are making arrangements for all passengers to be returned home. “While personnel continue to work on the technical issue we are making arrangements to fly all guests home via private charter flights and scheduled flights from St. Maarten. Guests on the current voyage will receive a refund equivalent to three days of the voyage and 50 percent off a future cruise,” according to a statement. “We are also cancelling the ship’s next voyage which is scheduled to depart on Saturday, March 16. Guests scheduled to sail on this cruise will receive a full refund and 25 percent off a future seven-day cruise.”

The Carnival Dream is the latest in a serious of unfortunate events for Carnival. Last month an engine fire crippled the Carnival Triumph in the Gulf of Mexico. More than 4,200 people were left without working toilets or power for several days as the ship was towed to Mobile, Alabama. In 2010, a similar incident happened to Carnival Splendor off the Mexican Riviera carrying 3,299 passengers.

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The Carnival Triumph, which was disabled after an engine room fire, finally docked Thursday night in Mobile, Alabama. Passengers endured five nightmarish days at sea that was marked by overflowing toilets, food shortages and foul odors. Clearly this wasn’t the vacation described in the glossy cruise brochures. Indeed, Carnival CEO Gerry Cahill apologized at a news conference and later on the public address system as passengers were disembarking. The company is compensating Triumph’s passengers with a full refund of the cruise fare, a future cruise credit to the amount paid for the voyage, all expenses for transportation, expenses and reimbursement of all shipboard purchases during the voyage (excluding casino charges, art and gift shop purchases) along with an additional $500 per passenger.

The company also stated that it would cancel 14 more voyages of the Triumph while it undergoes repairs. The affected sailings were from Feb. 11 to April 13. The company said guests booked on the later Triumph voyages will receive a full refund of their cruise fare as well as any other pre-paid non-refundable transportation costs. Guests will also receive a 25 percent discount on a future three- to five-day Carnival cruise or a 15 percent discount on a six- to seven-day cruise.

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The Carnival Triumph carrying over 3,000 people has lost propulsion in the Gulf of Mexico and will have to be towed to shore, the cruise line said in a statement. According to Carnival, there was a fire in the engine room of the Triumph yesterday morning as the ship sailed approximately 150 miles off the coast of Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula. The fire was extinguished without injuries but the ship lost propulsion and is now operating on emergency generator power. Another ship, the Carnival Elation, sailed out to the Triumph’s location to provide passengers with additional food and beverages.

The ship will be towed to Progreso, Mexico, where all 3,143 guests on board will be disembarked and flown home, the cruise line reported. The Carnival Triumph left port in Galveston, Texas on Thursday with over 3,000 passengers and 1,000 crew members. It was scheduled to return today.

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Cruise vacations to Alaska, the California coast, Hawaii, Mexico and the Panama Canal are on sale during the Princess Cruises “5-Day Super Sale,” running from January 31 through February 4.

With more than 150 West Coast cruises on sale, the event offers savings of up to $1,100 per person, plus the opportunity to get up to $100 in free spending money per stateroom.

Passengers can choose from a variety of cruise itineraries where they can enjoy the magnificent scenery and wildlife of Alaska, the tropical warmth of the Hawaiian Islands, the wonder of engineering that is the Panama Canal, the best of the Golden State on a California Coastal or the colorful culture of Mexico.

In addition to special fares, passengers booking balcony staterooms or above will receive an onboard credit of $50 (cruises up to nine days) or $100 (for sailings 10 days or longer), and those booking interior or oceanview staterooms can get credits of $25 (cruises up to nine days) to $50 (cruises 10 days or longer).

More information about the cruise sale and pricing can be found at princess.com/sale.

Examples of special Super Sale fares include:

• California Coastal cruise – 7 days: $684 interior (was $834); $1,084 balcony (was $1,184)

• Inside Passage Alaska cruise – 7 days: $749 interior (was $899); $1,149 balcony (was $1,399)

• Gulf of Alaska cruise – 7 days: $854 interior (was $1,004); $1,304 balcony (was $1,454)

• Hawaiian Islands cruise – 14 days: $1,090 interior (was $1,790); $1,690 balcony (was $2,690)

• Panama Canal – 14 days: $1,499 interior (was $2,399); $2,049 balcony (was $3,149)
All cruise prices are per person, based on double occupancy and include government fees and taxes. The Super Sale runs from 12:01 a.m. PST on January 31 through 11:59 p.m. PST on February 4, 2013 and is available to residents of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and Mexico.

Additional information about Princess Cruises is available through a professional travel agent, by calling 1-800-PRINCESS, or by visiting the company’s website at www.princess.com.

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