DFA still verifying if Pinoys affected in Carnival cruise mishap
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is still checking whether there were Filipinos among some 4,000 passengers aboard the stricken Carnival Triumph cruise ship which had been adrift off Mexico's southern Yucatan Peninsula for five days.
“We are trying to check if any Filipino was affected by the incident,” DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez told GMA News Online via text on Saturday.
GMA News Online also sought information from Carnival cruises but they replied through email that they do not give out passenger or crew information.
However, the company confirmed that there was no one injured during the incident aboard the Carnival Triumph.
An engine fire left the massive 893-foot vessel adrift the Gulf of Mexico. It has been without propulsion and running on emergency generator power since Sunday.
According to a report of the Reuters news agency, Carnival's 3,143 passengers and 1,086 crew have been dealing with 'hellish' conditions where passengers were made to defacate in plastic bags due to internal sewerage system failure.
On Friday, Reuters reported that that ship's exhausted passengers were relieved when the Carnival Triumph, with overflowing toilets and stench-filled cabins, was finally towed by tug boats in to the port of Mobile, Alabama.
Some travelers kissed the ground when they walked off, others disembarked wearing the ship's white bath robes, part souvenir and part protection against a chilly night.
With only one working elevator, it took several hours to get the more than 4,200 people off the ship, Carnival said. Passengers were greeted dockside with warm food, blankets and cell phones to call family and friends.
About 100 buses waited to carry passengers on a seven-hour bus ride to Galveston, Texas, while others buses departed for shorter rides to New Orleans, as well as hotels in Mobile, before eventually flying home.
The ship left Galveston, Texas last week and was supposed to return there on Monday when an engine-room fire knocked out power and plumbing across most of the ship on Sunday.
Awful stench
“The stench was awful,” said Robin Chandler, a 50-year-old from Dallas who spent her birthday on the ship. "A lot of people were crying and freaking out."
On the other hand, Jacob Combs, an Austin, Texas-based sales executive with a healthcare and hospice company, praised the ship's crew.
"Just imagine the filth," said Combs, 30. "People were doing crazy things and going to the bathroom in sinks and showers. It was inhumane. The stewards would go in and clean it all up. They were constantly cleaning," he told Reuters.
Nick Ware, whose mother is among the Triumph passengers told the CNN that meals consisted of sandwiches with only condiments or onions due to a shortage in food supply.
"Once the meat for the burgers ran out, they were basically just eating condiment hamburgers. Just, you know, whatever condiments they could get on a bun," Ware said.
Some relief
Vance Gulliksen, a spokesman for the ship's operator Carnival Corp said a technical team on board had succeeded in gradually restoring auxiliary power to operate some basic hotel functions.
"Public and cabin toilets are operational in certain sections of the ship and some power in the Lido dining area is providing for hot coffee and limited hot food service," he told Reuters.
Gulliksen added that the ship had cold running water and three Carnival ships rendezvoused with the Triumph to provide additional supplies and meals.
Apology and compensation
Meanwhile, Carnival Cruise Lines Chief Executive Gerry Cahill personally boarded the Triumph to apologize to passengers.
"I know the conditions on board were very poor," he told reporters, sounding shaken in a brief media appearance before he boarded the ship. "I know it was difficult. I want to apologize for subjecting our guests to that," he said.
As compensation, all guests will be given a full refund, a future cruise credit equal to the amount paid for the voyage and reimbursement of purchases on the ship, according to a statement on the Carnival's site.
The company said $500 per person will be given as additional compensation.
“The situation on board was difficult and we are very sorry for what has happened. We pride ourselves on providing our guests with a great vacation experience and clearly we failed in this case,” Cahill said. - with reports from Reuters/Andrei Medina, VVP, GMA News
“We are trying to check if any Filipino was affected by the incident,” DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez told GMA News Online via text on Saturday.
GMA News Online also sought information from Carnival cruises but they replied through email that they do not give out passenger or crew information.
However, the company confirmed that there was no one injured during the incident aboard the Carnival Triumph.
An engine fire left the massive 893-foot vessel adrift the Gulf of Mexico. It has been without propulsion and running on emergency generator power since Sunday.
According to a report of the Reuters news agency, Carnival's 3,143 passengers and 1,086 crew have been dealing with 'hellish' conditions where passengers were made to defacate in plastic bags due to internal sewerage system failure.
On Friday, Reuters reported that that ship's exhausted passengers were relieved when the Carnival Triumph, with overflowing toilets and stench-filled cabins, was finally towed by tug boats in to the port of Mobile, Alabama.
Some travelers kissed the ground when they walked off, others disembarked wearing the ship's white bath robes, part souvenir and part protection against a chilly night.
With only one working elevator, it took several hours to get the more than 4,200 people off the ship, Carnival said. Passengers were greeted dockside with warm food, blankets and cell phones to call family and friends.
About 100 buses waited to carry passengers on a seven-hour bus ride to Galveston, Texas, while others buses departed for shorter rides to New Orleans, as well as hotels in Mobile, before eventually flying home.
The ship left Galveston, Texas last week and was supposed to return there on Monday when an engine-room fire knocked out power and plumbing across most of the ship on Sunday.
Awful stench
“The stench was awful,” said Robin Chandler, a 50-year-old from Dallas who spent her birthday on the ship. "A lot of people were crying and freaking out."
On the other hand, Jacob Combs, an Austin, Texas-based sales executive with a healthcare and hospice company, praised the ship's crew.
"Just imagine the filth," said Combs, 30. "People were doing crazy things and going to the bathroom in sinks and showers. It was inhumane. The stewards would go in and clean it all up. They were constantly cleaning," he told Reuters.
Nick Ware, whose mother is among the Triumph passengers told the CNN that meals consisted of sandwiches with only condiments or onions due to a shortage in food supply.
"Once the meat for the burgers ran out, they were basically just eating condiment hamburgers. Just, you know, whatever condiments they could get on a bun," Ware said.
Some relief
Vance Gulliksen, a spokesman for the ship's operator Carnival Corp said a technical team on board had succeeded in gradually restoring auxiliary power to operate some basic hotel functions.
"Public and cabin toilets are operational in certain sections of the ship and some power in the Lido dining area is providing for hot coffee and limited hot food service," he told Reuters.
Gulliksen added that the ship had cold running water and three Carnival ships rendezvoused with the Triumph to provide additional supplies and meals.
Apology and compensation
Meanwhile, Carnival Cruise Lines Chief Executive Gerry Cahill personally boarded the Triumph to apologize to passengers.
"I know the conditions on board were very poor," he told reporters, sounding shaken in a brief media appearance before he boarded the ship. "I know it was difficult. I want to apologize for subjecting our guests to that," he said.
As compensation, all guests will be given a full refund, a future cruise credit equal to the amount paid for the voyage and reimbursement of purchases on the ship, according to a statement on the Carnival's site.
The company said $500 per person will be given as additional compensation.
“The situation on board was difficult and we are very sorry for what has happened. We pride ourselves on providing our guests with a great vacation experience and clearly we failed in this case,” Cahill said. - with reports from Reuters/Andrei Medina, VVP, GMA News
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