Cruises canceled following Carnival Freedom fire during busy spring break season
'Damage is more than we first thought,' Carnival says of the Freedom fire
Carnival cruise passenger catches video of Freedom on fire for second time in less than 2 years
A fire broke out aboard the Carnival Freedom cruise ship about 20 miles away from Eleuthera Island, Bahamas, on March 23, the cruise line announced. Courtesy: @breezebreeze_ via Storyful
Two cruises have been canceled this week during the busy spring break travel season, following a fire on the Carnival Freedom, the second on the ship in less than two years.
"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," a Carnival spokesman told Fox Business.
Initial information from Carnival about the fire came on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, confirming the fire broke out at 3:15 p.m. ET Saturday on the port side of the ship’s exhaust funnel while it was 20 miles off Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas.
Passengers with upcoming cruises nearly immediately began asking if they would be canceled, and at the time Carnival said no. However, "a thorough assessment" was completed in Freeport on Sunday, requiring it to return to the shipyard on Monday afternoon for the required repairs to stabilize the funnel.
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Carnival Freedom reported a fire on the port side of the ship’s exhaust funnel March 23, 2024. (@breezebreeze_ via Storyful / Fox News)
While multiple witnesses reported a lightning strike, Carnival is investigating the cause of the fire. The ship's onboard team quickly extinguished the fire and no injuries were reported.
"It was scary, very scary, fire on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean," passenger Jamie Eubanks told FOX 35 Orlando while disembarking in Port Canaveral on Monday.
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Cruisers told the TV station the top deck was closed the rest of the trip, and they did not get to visit all the ports planned for their itinerary.
"We sincerely regret the impact to our embarking guests, as we know they have been looking forward to their spring break vacation," the Carnival statement reads. The cruise line is providing guests on both canceled cruises with a full refund and a 100 percent future cruise credit.
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The Carnival Freedom, shown in Italy in 2007, caught fire in the Caribbean on Saturday, March 23, for the second time in less than two years. (Victor Sokolowicz/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Carnival thanked the passengers who were onboard during the fire, noting their "outstanding cooperation and support."
The Freedom's exhaust funnel previously caught fire in May 2022 while the ship was docked at Grand Turk Island in Turks and Caicos. Video from then also showed the ship’s funnel – referred to by some as the whale tail – consumed by flames and smoke.
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Passengers board the Carnival Freedom in February 2013 in Key West, Fla. (KAREN BLEIER/AFP via Getty Images / Reuters)
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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.
Fox Business' Greg Norman contributed to this report.