cruise passengers missing

‘My brother didn't just vanish': Family frustrated after Carnival Cruise passenger disappears

Kevin mcgrath has been missing since monday. carnival officials said he wasn't seen in surveillance footage., by kim wynne • published september 6, 2023 • updated on september 7, 2023 at 12:37 pm.

Danielle McGrath says the past few days have been unnerving for her and her family.

“All of our emotions are up and down right now,” McGrath said. “All of us.”

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Her brother, 26-year-old Kevin McGrath, a father of two, has been missing since Monday. He was last seen in his cabin around 7 a.m. Monday morning on a Carnival cruise ship heading back to Port Miami. The trip was a birthday celebration for their father.

“The whole point of the cruise was to celebrate my dad’s 60th birthday, and it was a big group of about 40 people,” she said.

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McGrath said later Monday morning — as the cruise was ending and passengers were disembarking — the family gathered for breakfast, but Kevin never showed up.

“When it’s time to meet up for breakfast, no one can find him,” she said.

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Family members searched all over the cruise ship.

“He wasn’t in the room,” McGrath said. “No one could find him. No one.”

Once they reported him missing, the U.S. Coast Guard was contacted and searched the water by helicopter. Miami-Dade Police are also investigating but have no leads.

“The guest was not detected by surveillance systems, including U.S. Customs and Border Patrol during the debarkation process," a Carnival spokesperson said in part in a statement to NBC6. "Miami-Dade Police eventually cleared the ship to sail. The Carnival Care Team is supporting the guest’s family.”

The Coast Guard announced Thursday that they were suspending their search for McGrath.

“My jaw just dropped,” said friend Mitchell Branch. “I was speechless. I didn’t know what to say.”

Branch said he and Kevin served in the U.S. Army together.

“We were in the same unit, same battalion, same company,” he said.

He and other family members say Kevin would never disappear and was always in good spirits.

“He’s always the light of the room,” Branch said.

“He has this huge personality that will definitely stick out in any room,” McGrath said. “He’s very straightforward, goofy, he’s funny.”

McGrath is urging other passengers who may have seen him that morning to speak up.

“My brother didn’t just vanish,” McGrath said. “Someone knows something. Someone’s seen something. I just want my brother home. My family wants my brother home. Just please, we need him home.”

Family members say Kevin was last seen wearing a black t-shirt, black shorts, and gray sneakers.

Anyone with information should call Miami-Dade Police at 305-715-3300.

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Missing Carnival cruise passenger's last known whereabouts revealed as search intensifies off Florida coast

A cruise spokesperson said the man wasn't seen by u.s. customs and border patrol during the debarkation process.

Passenger details nightmare on cruise ship: 'We felt trapped'

Kathleen Meenan, a passenger on Carnival Sunshine, shares how the ship was battered by 80 mph winds and rough waters on 'America Reports.'

Officials are searching for a Carnival cruise passenger who went missing as the ship arrived in Miami on Monday morning. 

Kevin McGrath, 26, was last seen at his stateroom early Monday morning on the Carnival Conquest, according to the Miami-Dade Police Department. He was last seen in the area of PortMiami, police said.

A spokesperson for Carnival Cruise Line told Fox News Digital that the passenger's cabin mate last saw the man at 7:00 a.m., which is around the time that debarkation was beginning.

Cruise employees performed an "extensive" search of the ship, but the spokesperson said the 26-year-old wasn't found.

AMERICAN COLLEGE STUDENT IDENTIFIED AS PASSENGER WHO WENT OVERBOARD FROM WORLD'S LARGEST CRUISE SHIP

Officials are searching for a Carnival Cruise passenger who went missing as the ship arrived in Miami on Monday morning.  (Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images/Miami-Dade Police)

McGrath wasn't detected by the ship's surveillance systems and wasn't seen by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol during the cruise's debarkation process.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard told Fox News Digital it is "actively searching" near PortMiami and along the South Florida shore for McGrath, but his whereabouts are still unknown.

SEARCH UNDERWAY AFTER PASSENGER ON WORLD'S LARGEST CRUISE SHIP GOES OVERBOARD

McGrath wasn't detected by the ship's surveillance systems, and wasn't seen by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol during the cruise's debarkation process. (Miami-Dade Police Department)

A Carnival Cruise spokesperson said the Coast Guard performed a helicopter search.

Angel Rodriguez, a detective with the Miami-Dade Police Department told Fox News Digital that McGrath was supposed to meet the family for breakfast before leaving the cruise but never arrived.

The detective also said that the ship’s cameras and security devices don't indicate he went overboard.

Key West Florida USA cruise ship Carnival Conquest at dock Mallory Square.  (Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

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The ship was eventually cleared to sail by Miami-Dade police .

McGrath was on a two-night cruise to Bimini, Bahamas.

Adam Sabes is a writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter @asabes10.

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Coast Guard searches for man missing from Louisiana cruise ship

Surveillance video on a Carnival cruise ship from which a 28-year-old man went missing shows him jumping from a deck early Monday, a spokesman for the cruise line said Tuesday.

The Coast Guard is searching for Tyler Barnett, who went missing Monday morning from the Carnival Glory, which is bound for Montego Bay, Jamaica. Barnett, of Houma, Louisiana, the father of twin girls, was reported missing that afternoon, and the Coast Guard sent two aircraft to search, following the ship’s track toward Jamaica, it said.

Matt Lupoli, Carnival’s senior manager of public relations, said video appears to show the missing passenger jumping overboard.

“After multiple reviews of the shipboard surveillance video, it appears that the guest reported missing on Monday jumped from the ship’s Deck 4 at approximately 1:40 a.m. on Monday,” he said.

“He can be seen climbing on a lifeboat and jumping from there,” Lupoli said.

The Coast Guard has been informed of the video and has been able to narrow its search effort, Petty Officer 2nd Class Jose Hernandez said. The search had been over a 200-mile area.

The more specific location also means the Coast Guard has been able to launch an HC-130 plane and an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, he said. The search is 30 miles southwest of Southwest Pass, Louisiana, the Coast Guard said.

The Carnival Glory left Louisiana for Montego Bay and is due to arrive Wednesday, the cruise line said.

Tyler Barnett's sister, Destiny Barnett, and 13 other relatives were also on the cruise.

"It makes you feel crazy to be stuck on a ship where everyone else is having a good time," Destiny Barnett said. "It was supposed to be a vacation, but for us, it's hell."

The cruise is also scheduled to stop at Grand Cayman Island and Cozumel, Mexico, before it returns to New Orleans on Sunday, according to its itinerary .

Destiny Barnett said her brother's card was last used at his cabin door. His cellphone was in his room, and his bed had not been slept in.

Barnett's grandmother Dirlean Tate Mason, who is not on the cruise, is anxiously waiting for news. She said that Tyler Barnett works on the river barges in Louisiana and that she does not think he would try to take his own life. “He loves his girls,” she said.

"I just want answers, and I'm holding out for hope," she said.

The Coast Guard issued broadcasts notifying mariners in the Gulf of Mexico that a person may have fallen overboard, a spokesman said.

In a post on X, the Coast Guard said search efforts were paused Monday night because of dangerous weather conditions, including rough seas and strong winds. It said it would launch more search assets as soon as conditions allowed.

According to d ata from the cruise industry consultancy firm GP Wild, there were 212 man overboard incidents on cruise ships from 2009 to 2019. Forty-eight of those passengers were rescued.

In April, Coast Guard crews suspended a search for an Australian passenger who fell off a cruise off Hawaii after a three-day search yielded no results.

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Carnival cruise passenger vanishes after ship docks in Florida

September 6, 2023 / 8:39 AM EDT / CBS News

A man has been missing for over two days after disappearing from a docked Carnival cruise ship in Miami, officials and the cruise line said. 

According to a missing persons poster released by the Miami-Dade Police Department, 26-year-old Kevin McGrath was last seen on board the Carnival cruise ship Conquest early Monday morning. McGrath was reported missing by a family member, Carnival said in a statement to CBS News. 

Police said he was last seen in his cabin aboard the ship at around 2 a.m. local time on Sept. 4. Carnival said that McGrath was "last seen in his cabin at approximately 7 a.m. according to his cabinmate."

That was around the time guests were leaving the ship, the cruise line said. An "extensive search" did not find McGrath on board. 

The U.S. Coast Guard used a helicopter to search the "water in the general vicinity," the cruise line said, and Miami-Dade police officers boarded the ship to investigate and search. McGrath was "not detected by surveillance systems, including U.S. Customs and Border Patrol during the debarkation process," Carnival said. The ship was later cleared to sail on by police. 

McGrath, a Black man with brown eyes and brown hair, was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black shorts and gray sneakers, police said. 

🚨 #MISSING : Kevin McGrath, 26 years old, was last seen in the area of Port of Miami 1015 North America Way. The missing person may be in need of services. Anyone with information is urged to contact @CrimeStopper305 at (305) 471-8477 or by dialing **TIPS. pic.twitter.com/pmAAMpgSgM — Miami-Dade Police (@MiamiDadePD) September 5, 2023

Police said McGrath "may be in need of services." 

The cruise line said they were in contact with McGrath's family through their Carnival Care Team.

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26-Year-Old Reported Missing After Cruise Ship Returns to Florida: 'He Never Arrived'

Kevin McGrath was last seen by his brother aboard a Carnival Cruise ship returning from Bimini, Bahamas

Miami Dade Police Department; Getty

Officials in Florida are investigating the disappearance of a cruise passenger who did not return with the vessel once the ship docked.

Kevin McGrath, 26, was aboard a Carnival Cruise from PortMiami to Bimini, Bahamas, over the Labor Day holiday weekend. However, when the Carnival Conquest returned to the United States on Monday, he was not on the ship.

Angel Rodriguez, a detective for the Miami-Dade Police Department, told PEOPLE that “McGrath was last seen by his brother at approximately 2 a.m. at his cabin.” 

The missing passenger “was supposed to meet the family for breakfast prior to disembarking from the ship but he never arrived” as members of the group had planned. After his loved ones were unable to determine his whereabouts, a search was conducted by ship staff and security but their efforts were unsuccessful.

Rodriguez said a search of the ship’s cameras and security devices did not indicate that McGrath went overboard. The detective added that the U.S. Coast Guard also responded to assist with the search yielding negative results.

A spokesperson for Carnival Cruise Line told PEOPLE that “the Carnival Care Team is supporting the guest’s family” during this difficult time.

A rep with the cruise company previously told Tampa NBC News affiliate WFLA-8 that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol did not locate McGrath during the debarkation process, adding that “Miami Dade police eventually cleared the ship to sail.”

Fox News Digital also spoke with a representative from Carnival Cruise Line who said the U.S. Coast Guard also performed a helicopter search for the missing man.

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Authorities described McGrath as being 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighing 170 pounds, and having brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black shorts, and gray sneakers. 

Anyone with knowledge of McGrath’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Miami-Dade police special victims bureau/missing persons squad at 305-715-3300 or Crime Stoppers of Miami-Dade & the Florida Keys either online or at 305-471-8477 (TIPS).

In July, Carnival Cruise Line issued a statement regarding another man who had reportedly gone missing while on one of their ships in Florida. 

"The crew was notified by his traveling companion late in the afternoon about his missing status after he had not been seen all day," Carnival told PEOPLE in a statement on July 24 in regard to 30-year-old Jaylen Hill.

Hill had been traveling on the Carnival Elation as it made its way back to its homeport of Jacksonville after a four-day trip to the Bahamas.

"Sadly, after an exhaustive onboard search and a review of security camera video, it was determined that he jumped," the company said at the time. "Shoreside authorities were notified, and the crew was advised to continue to Jacksonville."

Approximately two months prior to Hill’s incident, a 35-year-old man, identified as Ronnie Lee Peale Jr ., was riding on the Carnival Magic ship when he went overboard in Florida. 

On May 31, the U.S. Coast Guard called off the search after covering more than 5,171 square miles over a span of 60 hours. “The decision to suspend the active search efforts pending further development is never one we take lightly. We offer our most sincere condolences to Mr. Peale’s family and friends," the Coast Guard said in a news release at the time.

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A Carnival cruise passenger went overboard, and his mother says she found out from a cousin, not the company

• The Coast Guard is searching for a 28-year-old man who went missing from a Carnival cruise ship Monday.
• The passenger's mother told Business Insider she learned about his disappearance from a relative.
• Carnival said Tuesday that surveillance footage appeared to show a man jumping off the ship. Family say he slipped.

A missing 28-year-old cruise passenger on the Carnival Glory is believed to have gone overboard on Monday, and the Coast Guard is searching the waters near New Orleans to find him.

While the passenger's mom told Business Insider she was hopeful he was still alive, she said that she was worried he might not have survived. She also said she found out from family — not the cruise line — that her son was missing.

Tyler Barnett of Houma, Louisiana, was first reported missing Monday morning by a family member, just a day after leaving New Orleans for a weeklong cruise to Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands and Cozumel, Mexico, a statement from Carnival Cruise Line said.

In a Tuesday evening update, a spokesperson for Carnival said that the ship's security team had reviewed surveillance footage and that the missing passenger appeared to jump from the ship's Deck 4 at about 1:40 a.m. on Monday.

"He can be seen climbing on a lifeboat and jumping from there," the spokesperson said. 

It was only on Tuesday that the ship's security team was informed the missing passenger might have been wearing a different shirt, which allowed crew members to search video from the ship more accurately, the spokesperson said. 

Carnival said it had informed the Coast Guard and the man's family of the development. The cruise line didn't release the man's name — though the man's mother, Elisha Reid, told BI in an earlier interview that her son, Barnett, was the missing passenger. 

But Reid told Business Insider that the family had seen the footage and it shows Barnett didn't jump, but slipped.

"They hit a wave and he went down off the lifeboat," she said. "Tyler was my only son, my firstborn. He was my everything in life! He was the air I breathed. He was the beat of my heart. I feel as if my heart no longer beats."

Barnett was seen on security footage at around midnight on Monday, the Coast Guard said. The Coast Guard launched two aircraft to try to find Barnett in a 200-mile area near where the ship sailed into the Gulf of Mexico.

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The cruise line said teams were helping Barnett's family members who were still on board and that the US Coast Guard cleared Carnival Glory to carry on with its cruise.

Barnett's mother, Reid, said Carnival initially told her daughter — who is on the ship — there was no footage of what happened to her son.

All cruise ships are required to have 42-inch guard rails and man-overboard imaging under the 2010 Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act. But BI previously reported that many ships had yet to implement newer technology that automatically detects when a person goes overboard by using thermal cameras and radars that promptly alert crew members.

The time between someone going overboard and the cruise ship launching a search-and-rescue mission can often be the difference between life and death. 

Carnival did not immediately respond to BI's question about whether the Carnival Glory employed any such tech.

Reid told BI her son's key card was used to enter the ship's casino just after midnight and then to enter his room 12 minutes later.

Reid, who isn't on board, said Barnett was on the cruise with his sister and uncle when he went missing. She said she didn't find out her son was missing until a cousin messaged her, unaware that she hadn't gotten the news yet.

"I have my moments where I break, but I'm keeping the faith," Reid said on Tuesday, before seeing the footage. "What's important to me is to know where he's at and to have him home, whether he's alive or not, I want his body to be home."

Reid's daughter, Destiny, is still on board the ship, she said. Reid said Barnett's sister told her she last saw her brother at about 11:40 p.m. when he told her he was going to his room.

Reid said her daughter was very close to Barnett and had been texting her updates periodically from the ship.

"She's trying her best," Reid said. "She's not going to leave that ship without her brother."

A Carnival spokesperson told BI in response to Reid's comments about the cruise line: "Our Care Team will continue to do all they can to support the family in this difficult time."

While the chances of falling off a cruise ship are extremely low, at least nine other people have gone overboard this year, as BI previously reported. Only two of those survived the fall.

Reid said her son was a great father to his two twin girls, who she said now are orphans since their mom had earlier died.

"They were everything to him," Reid told BI. He was very protective."

Barnett grew up around the water and "absolutely breathed" being on the river and the sea, working on a tugboat.

"My only peace is Tyler loved the water and to fish," Reid said. "How ironic that he is where he always loved to be."

November 14, 2023: This story has been updated to include a statement from Carnival Cruise Line saying video surveillance appeared to show the missing passenger jumping from the ship. 

November 15, 2023: This story has been updated to include new comments from Tyler Barnett's mother.

Watch: Sub taking tourists to see the Titanic goes missing

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Carnival passenger goes overboard during Caribbean cruise, Coast Guard suspends search

A Carnival Cruise Line passenger went overboard on the line’s Carnival Glory ship.

The man appears to have jumped from the fourth deck shortly before 2 a.m. on Monday, according to Carnival spokesperson Matt Lupoli. A family member reported the passenger missing on Monday morning.

"Only on Tuesday were we advised of the possibility of him wearing a different shirt, which allowed our security team to change the profile of the guest as we searched onboard video," Lupoli said in an emailed statement. "We have informed the U.S. Coast Guard and are providing assistance to the guest’s family that was traveling with him who are still on board."

The Coast Guard suspended its search for the passenger on Thursday, and the incident is under investigation.

After the man was reported missing, the ship’s security team immediately began searching the vessel, Lupoli said in an earlier statement. The ship was on its way from New Orleans to Montego Bay, Jamaica at the time as part of a week-long Western Caribbean cruise that began Sunday, according to CruiseMapper .

The Coast Guard said the passenger was 28-year-old Tyler Barnett from Houma, Louisiana. Petty Officer 3rd Class Anthony Randisi told USA TODAY that Carnival reported the guest was last seen around midnight on Monday.

The Coast Guard began searching later that day. “Our crews battled severe weather conditions for multiple days and made every effort to find Mr. Barnett," Lt. Cmdr. Sean DiGeorge, Coast Guard District Eight search and rescue mission coordinator, said in a news release . "Suspending an active search is never a decision we make lightly, and we offer our most sincere condolences to Mr. Barnett’s family and friends.”

The search area originally encompassed approximately 200 miles, but was narrowed to "roughly 30 miles southwest of" Louisiana's Southwest Pass, the Coast Guard said on X , formerly Twitter.

The Coast Guard cleared Carnival Glory to continue to Montego Bay, where it was set to arrive Wednesday, Lupoli said.

Cruise overboard detection systems: What are they and why doesn't every ship have them?

Between 2009 and 2019, there were 212 overboard incidents globally involving passengers and crew, according to  statistics compiled for Cruise Lines International Association  by consulting firm G.P. Wild (International) Ltd. Among those, only 48 people were rescued.

If you or someone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can call the  U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline  at 800-273-TALK (8255) any time day or night, or  chat online.

Crisis Text Line  also provides free, 24/7, confidential support via text message to people in crisis when they dial 741741.

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville . You can reach him at [email protected].

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Family Desperate for Answers After Passenger Mysteriously Vanishes From Carnival Cruise Ship

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🚨 #MISSING : Kevin McGrath, 26 years old, was last seen in the area of Port of Miami 1015 North America Way. The missing person may be in need of services. Anyone with information is urged to contact @CrimeStopper305 at (305) 471-8477 or by dialing **TIPS. pic.twitter.com/pmAAMpgSgM — Miami-Dade Police (@MiamiDadePD) September 5, 2023

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‘Miracle': Missing cruise ship passenger found OK in water

A US Coast Guard helicopter rescued a man who was reported to have fallen overboard from a cruise ship into the Gulf of Mexico about 20 miles (32 kilometers) off Southwest Pass, Louisiana on Thanksgiving Day. (Nov. 26)

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard says a passenger who went overboard from a cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico was rescued on Thanksgiving after likely being in the water for hours.

The 28-year-old man was reported missing at noon Thursday while the vessel, the Carnival Valor, was heading to Cozumel, Mexico. According to Carnival Cruise Line, the man was with his sister at a bar on Carnival Valor Wednesday at 11 p.m. and went to use the restroom. His sister reported him missing the next day after the man did not return to his stateroom.

The Coast Guard launched search and rescue crews Thursday afternoon and alerted nearby ships to be watchful.

Coast Guard Lt. Seth Gross said a cargo ship later saw a person in the water about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Southwest Pass, Louisiana, and the mouth of the Mississippi River. Gross said the man confirmed he was the missing cruise ship passenger after he was hoisted into a helicopter about 8:25 p.m. Thursday.

“He appeared to be suffering from mild hypothermia, shock, dehydration, but his condition overall appeared stable,” Gross told WWL-TV, adding the man was taken for medical care.

Gross called the rescue “a miracle especially on a holiday like Thanksgiving.”

In a statement, Carnival said: “We greatly appreciate the efforts of all, most especially the U.S. Coast Guard and the mariner who spotted the guest in the water.”

The man’s name has not been released.

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Royal caribbean cruise ship passenger missing after going overboard on trip to the bahamas.

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A 41-year-old man is missing after he went overboard over the weekend on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship to the Bahamas, officials said.

The Coast Guard received a call at 7:17 p.m. Sunday about the passenger, who fell off the vessel around 127 miles east of Charleston, South Carolina, Petty Officer Vincent Moreno told the Post and Courier .

“A guest went overboard from Vision of the Seas. The ship and crew immediately reported the incident to local authorities and launched a search and rescue mission,” a company rep told The Post in an email.

“Out of privacy for the guest and their family, we have no additional details to share,” the statement added Monday.

The Coast Guard deployed a C-130 Hercules plane from Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and another C-130 crew responded from Clearwater, Florida, to relieve the first.

But on Monday morning, the agency announced it had suspended the search after scouring more than 1,625 square miles for eight hours, WCBD reported .

The missing man was aboard Royal Caribbean’s “8 Night Bahamas & Perfect Day Holiday Cruise,” which left from Baltimore on Friday, passengers told the Post and Courier.

Jake Utzinger, a 21-year-old film student from New Jersey who was vacationing with his girlfriend’s family, said he was lying in bed around 7:45 p.m. when the captain announced that a passenger had fallen overboard. “I instantly felt sick to my stomach knowing that one of our fellow travelers had been lost at sea,” Utzinger told the paper.

He said he, his girlfriend and other passengers rushed to the pool deck to provide “extra pairs of eyes” in the search-and-rescue effort.

Another passenger, Colin Schappi, told WCBD that he heard the announcement “Oscar! Oscar! Oscar! Starboard!” — a call to the crew signifying an overboard emergency on the right side of the ship — about 7:15 p.m.

“We were wondering what was going on with that,” he said.

Crews stopped the ship, dropped a strobe lamp, and searched for the passenger for six hours before resuming the trip around 2 a.m. “It’s definitely going to be rough continuing this voyage knowing that a family is missing their loved one,” Utzinger told the news outlet.

The Vision of the Seas’ next stop is Port Canaveral, Florida, after which it will sail throughout the Bahamas before returning to Baltimore on Saturday.

The 915-foot-long ship, which has a total capacity of 2,000 guests and 700 crew members, made its first voyage in 1988, according to the Royal Caribbean website.

In August, a Royal Caribbean passenger went overboard from the Wonder of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in the world, while it was off the coast of Cuba during a voyage from Florida.

The passenger was identified as 19-year-old Sigmund Ropich, a college student from Washington state known to his loved ones as “Boiboi.” He had been vacationing with friends at the time.

Earlier that month, an  Indian woman died  after she apparently jumped off the company’s Spectrum of the Seas.

Reeta Sahani, 64, was reported missing after her husband, Jakesh Sahani, 70, woke up in the middle of the night and noticed she was not in their cabin.  

In June, a 42-year-old woman was rescued after she fell off Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Seas about 25 miles south of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic during its voyage from Florida.

Other recent incidents occurred on the cruise ships Carnival Magic, Carnival Elation and Emerald Princess. 

On average, 19 people go overboard on cruise ships every year — and of those, only about four are rescued, according to a 2020 study commissioned by the industry trade group Cruise Lines International Association.

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‘We got a bonus tour’ cruise passengers stranded in Canada by rockslide rejoin their ships in Haines

Updated at 11:45 a.m.

At 4 a.m. Wednesday, just as the sun was starting to cast long blue shadows over downtown Haines – four massive Holland America tour buses motored into the parking lot of the Port Chilkoot Cruise Ship Dock. 

Some 150 people climbed down the stairs and slowly made their way down the dock – a handful stopping to photograph themselves in front of the Haines sign before climbing onto tender boats – basically water shuttles – bound for the nearby Holland America Koningsdam. 

While many of the passengers were visibly tired, others like Australians Arthur and Sharon Green, were joking and laughing.

“We didn’t expect to make it here,” Arthur said. “We got a bonus tour.” 

The crowd was primarily cruise ship passengers who disembarked in Skagway on Tuesday and were riding on the popular White Pass and Yukon Route Railway when a landslide overtook the tracks and then the roadway between markers 80 to 86 of the Klondike Highway. A 50-mile stretch of the South Klondike Highway from Fraser to Carcross has since been closed, according to Yukon Protective Services.

Both the U.S. border station and Canadian customs closed the Skagway Port of Entry after the slide, according to a Nixle alert sent out at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. That effectively blocked the passengers from returning to Alaska or reboarding the Holland America and Princess cruise ships they’re touring on.  

Laurie Wilcox, Michelle Plasschaert, of the Quad Cities in Iowa and Illinois and Dennis Hurd, of Vancouver, described the slide blocking first the train, then the buses they’d boarded in an attempt to get back to Skagway. 

“It came running down the road,” Hurd said, his voice trailing off. “It was good that… we had a good bus driver.” 

Cruise line management, port staff and others arranged an unusual solution to the problem and turned the group around and began the sixish-hour, several hundred mile drive to Haines. 

“It’s pretty unprecedented,” said Cruise Lines Agencies of Alaska port manager Leslie Ross who – along with Haines harbor master Shawn Bell – met the group on the dock on Wednesday morning. 

Ross worked to coordinate with Canadian and U.S. border officials to keep the Dalton Cache-Pleasant Camp border crossing near Haines open so the passengers could get through and rejoin their ships. 

The Greens, who are headed to Glacier Bay next, said this is their first cruise. 

“It’s been a great day,” Sharon said, enthusiastically. “We’ve had a rock slide. We’ve had mud over the train.” 

The Greens said they took the train to Carcross but on the trip back a slide had taken out the tracks. So they loaded onto buses and continued on toward Skagway, but then the landslide blocked the road. 

“So the bus took us back to Carcross,” she said. “The lovely women there fed us everything they could find.”

“Yeah at about 9 o’clock at night,” Arthur chimed in, laughing. 

“It was wonderful,” Sharon added. She looked over at her husband,  “Then, where’d we go? Crazy Horse? Red Horse?” 

“Whitehorse,” he said. 

The drive was dark, so they didn’t see much of Canada. Sharon said she was able to sleep but Arthur didn’t. 

“I kept the driver awake,” he said, with a laugh.  

Original story

The details are still being worked out, but cruise line officials say about 150 passengers from the Holland America Koningsdam and a Princess cruise ship are en route to Haines to rejoin their tours after being trapped in Canada. 

The passengers were riding on the White Pass and Yukon Route Railway when a massive rockslide overtook the tracks and then the roadway between markers 80 to 86 of the Klondike Highway, effectively cutting them off from returning to Skagway on Tuesday afternoon.

A 50-mile stretch of the South Klondike Highway from Fraser to Carcross has since been closed, according to Yukon Protective Services. Both the U.S. border station and Canadian customs closed the Skagway Port of Entry after the slide, according to a Nixle alert sent out at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. 

The passengers were transferred to buses and –  in an unusual solution to the problem – began the several hundred mile drive to Haines. 

“It’s pretty unprecedented,” said Cruise Lines Agencies of Alaska port manager Leslie Ross. 

Ross said the cruise ships are headed to Haines to retrieve their passengers from the borough’s dock. 

She was working to coordinate with Canadian and U.S. border officials to keep the borders open around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, then said she was headed to bed to catch a few hours of sleep before the crowd arrives in town.  The Skagway News’ Gretchen Wehmhoff contributed to this report.

Chilkat Valley News P.O. Box 630 Haines AK 99827 Ph: (907) 766-2688 © 2023 Chilkat Valley News

Family speaks out after getting stranded in Alaska mid-cruise

Plus, the cruise line said it will offer a discount on a future voyage.

A cruise vacation through Alaska turned into a travel nightmare for one Oklahoma family who got stranded without their belongings after a mishap with a local excursion caused them to miss their ship's boarding window.

The Gault family, including six young kids and a 78-year-old grandmother, are now safely back home from Ketchikan. They had disembarked from the Norwegian Encore on Friday, July 12 to see a lumberjack show that they booked through the cruise line.

"When you talk about cruise nightmares this is the definition of it," Joshua Gault told "Good Morning America" of the incident.

He said when they tried to get back to the ship, the local tour operator had told them to wait for the next bus. But that bus never arrived. The family said they called the local port agent who rushed them to the ship, only to see it already pulling away from the dock with their belongings, including some of their passports.

"I was in shock, like utterly shocked," he said, recalling thinking at the time, "Are they really doing this right now?"

The Gaults said they quickly reached out to Norwegian. His wife, Cailyn Gault, told "GMA" that "the people that I was speaking with were so empathetic, they were apologetic -- they're like, what do you need?"

The family said they had to cover the cost of their own food and hotel and find their own way back to Oklahoma -- a journey that included sleeping on airport floors.

"It was completely overwhelming," Cailyn Gault said.

The family said they estimate the unplanned change cost them more than $21,000 just to get home, which included nearly $9,000 in customs fees for missing a stop in Canada. They said Norwegian is working with them to make it right.

"I think we are on a right path as far as both agreeing that something bad really happened here," Joshua Gault said.

A spokesperson for Norwegian Cruise Line told ABC News in an emailed statement that the company "will be reimbursing the family for all of the out-of-pocket expenses they incurred over these two days, as a result of missing the ship in Ketchikan, including meals, accommodations, etc. Reimbursements will be processed once receipts for these expenses are provided to us."

NCL said it has "initiated the process to refund the family for the fee imposed by the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, as a result of the guests not visiting a foreign port prior to returning to the U.S., as required when an itinerary originates from the U.S. in accordance with the Passenger Vessel Services Act."

Additionally, the cruise line representative told ABC News that "these guests will be receiving a pro-rated refund for the two cruise days they missed."

"As a gesture of goodwill, the company will also be providing each of the nine guests with a Future Cruse Credit in the form of a 20% discount of their cruise fare that can be used towards their next voyage," the spokesperson said.

Experts say if you leave your cruise ship for an excursion, always bring a government-issued photo ID and the name and number of the port agent, who is the best person to help travelers who may run into trouble.

"The port agent is the cruise line's representative in that port," Stewart Chiron, founder of The Cruise Guy, said. "In this case, contacting the port agent was the best move because they would be able to contact the ship."

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Driver charged with dwi after car plunges off pier 21 in galveston, no others found in car.

Holly Galvan Posey , Digital Content Producer

GALVESTON – A crash at Galveston’s Pier 21 early Sunday morning resulted in the driver being charged with DWI, with no other occupants found in the submerged vehicle.

In the early Sunday morning hours, a vehicle managed to run off Galveston’s Pier 21 and became submerged in the Galveston harbor, landing in approximately 30 feet of water.

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One occupant, 21-year-old Caleb Joseph Hayes of Dickinson, identified as the driver, managed to escape the vehicle and was transported via EMS to UTMB Health Galveston. Hayes has since been medically cleared by UTMB and has been charged with driving while intoxicated.

SEE ALSO: Deputies search for suspect after woman stabbed to death in NW Harris County

It was initially reported that three other individuals were in the car with Hayes. Since then, police have managed to locate all of the passengers the driver alleged were in the car at the time of the incident. All of them are safe and well, and it appears they were not in the vehicle at the time.

The scene, located at the intersection of 21st Street and Harborside Drive, is serviced by Galveston Port Police, who requested assistance from the Galveston Police Department. The Galveston Dive Team was activated to search for the car at the bottom of the harbor, with the assistance of an underwater scanner from Port Police.

The United States Coast Guard also assisted police in the search for the remaining passengers, utilizing boats and a helicopter. Later in the morning, the submerged vehicle was located and brought to the surface at approximately 8:30 a.m. At that time, no other occupants were found inside the vehicle.

Texas Parks and Wildlife was asked to assist with technology that aids in locating any possible victims that may be below the surface. Their efforts were also unable to locate any other passengers.

• Man’s body found after vanishing in Houston-area lake

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Copyright 2024 by KPRC Click2Houston - All rights reserved.

About the Author

Holly galvan posey.

Holly joined the KPRC 2 digital team in March 2024, leveraging her eight years of expertise in blogging and digital content to share her passion for Houston. Outside of work, she enjoys exploring the city's vibrant scenes, all while balancing her roles as a wife and mother to two toddlers.

Alaska has lost its patience with cruise ships

F amously described as America’s last frontier and renowned for its wealth of natural wonders, Alaska has become the latest front against the surging tide of overtourism blighting so many destinations.

Now battle lines are being drawn in the state capital Juneau where simmering tensions over the rise in cruise ship visits has prompted the city’s residents to take a stand. Despite other initiatives limiting cruise numbers, locals are pushing for “Ship-free Saturdays” with a proposal to ban cruise ships carrying 250 or more passengers from docking on this day every week to bring a reprieve from the influx of visitors during summer months. The ban would also cover US Independence Day on July 4.

The city’s Assembly has until August 15 to adopt the measure, but if it doesn’t (as seems likely), it will be put to a vote by Juneau residents in October with planned implementation in 2025.

Since the pandemic, Alaska has become increasingly popular for cruise ship calls during the April to October season, with other settlements, such as Sitka, also keen to take action to quell numbers. As one of the most popular stops, Juneau bears the brunt, especially as the city is only accessible by air or sea, with ever-larger ships arriving and towering over its waterfront.

From here visitors head for the Mendenhall Glacier – though climate change has taken its toll with the ice receding significantly over the past two decades.

Last year, arrivals hit a record of more than 1.6 million (up from 1.1 million in 2022), swelling the 32,000-strong population in a wave of cruise ship passengers that locals say threatens to overwhelm them. On peak days, around 18,000 cruise passengers descend on the small city.

The bucket-list attractions of this remote and starkly beautiful state, seven times larger than the UK, attract a steady stream of cruise ships, among them mainstream brands such as Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line and Celebrity Cruises as well as smaller boutique lines. 

Two of the largest players, Princess Cruises and Holland America Line, have several ships in the region each summer, with sailings largely from the main departure ports of Seattle and Vancouver. Both brands also run wilderness lodges in the Denali National Park where guests can add stays to sailings.

Not surprisingly, tourism is Juneau’s highest earner, raking in $375 million (almost £290 million) in direct spending last year, according to a report by the McKinley Research Group, but some locals feel it lowers quality of life with increased traffic, crowded trails and the frequent noise of sightseeing helicopters.

Cruise industry body Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) has worked with Juneau’s local authorities to introduce a voluntary limit, which came into force this summer, of no more than five large vessels in port per day. Another agreement, due to take effect in 2026, will limit passenger arrivals to 16,000 daily, aside from Saturdays when the limit is 12,000. 

But some residents do not feel this goes far enough. A supporter of ship-free Saturdays is longstanding resident Deborah Craig who told Associated Press the “overwhelming” number of visitors diminished what residents loved about Juneau.

“It’s about preserving the lifestyle that keeps us in Juneau,” she said. “It is about clean air, clean water, pristine environment and easy access to trails, water sports and nature.”

Karla Hart, another resident, added: “If we have that one day a week without the chaos that comes with the cruise industry, we’ll all be happier and healthier.”

Not everyone wants curbs on cruising, however. Opponents have set up Protect Juneau’s Future, a grassroots coalition of residents, businesses and other interested parties. One of them is Juneau Chamber of Commerce president Laura McDonnell, who believes ship-free Saturdays would be detrimental to the city’s economy. She said her own business, Caribou Crossings, made 98 per cent of its annual revenue during the summer cruise season. 

Protect Juneau’s Future says there are already seven Saturdays without cruise ship visits during the season, with more than half of Saturdays year-round being ship-free. It also estimates that Saturday cruise passengers are expected to bring in nearly $32 million in direct spending to Juneau’s economy next year, a sum that will be lost if Saturday calls are axed.

“Cruise tourism impacts every single sector of Juneau’s economy,” says its website.  “Eliminating cruise ship calls every week from an already limited season would create ramifications for the entire community, especially small family-owned businesses.”

One of the group’s supporters, Captain Dan Blanchard, owner and chief executive of UnCruise Adventures, told Telegraph Travel he felt current initiatives ensured the city’s tourism industry remained sustainable while benefitting the community. 

“We need not go crazy here,” he cautioned. “We need to support the process by sticking with the common-sense regulations and voluntary agreements that help to strike a balance between the need for viable business and preserving the Alaska I love.”

Five other destinations pushing back against cruise ships

Venice .

The first and most famous city that started protests against cruise ships with its No Grandi Navi (no big ships) campaign that succeeded in banning vessels larger than 25,000 tons from the city. They now dock at alternative ports including Marghera, Ravenna and Trieste.

The Dutch city hit the headlines recently as it announced that from 2026, a maximum of 100 ocean cruise ships annually would be able to dock in the city. Furthermore, it reiterated plans to relocate the cruise terminal outside the city by 2035. Rotterdam is seen as the main alternative.

Bar Harbor, Maine

Disgruntled locals of the quaint New England town voted to limit cruise visitors to 1,000 a day. The restriction came into partial effect this summer as pre-existing cruise ship reservations were honoured, but will be fully implemented in 2025. Alternative stops include New York, Boston, Portland in Maine and the Canadian city of St John in New Brunswick.

Water-spraying protesters targeted all tourists in their latest demonstrations, but the city has also acted to curb cruise ship visits by closing one of its terminals and capping the number of ships to seven at a time. The Catalan city is a key turnaround port where cruises start and finish, though for day stops, some lines are now offering Tarragona, further west.

Key West 

Sitting at the tip of the Florida Keys, this chilled-out hamlet has become a flashpoint between residents who voted to ban large cruise ships and cap passenger numbers, and Florida’s legislators who overruled them. More recently, state governor Ron DeSantis approved the new long-term lease for a pier that caters for larger ships. The battle continues.

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Traveling Today? What You Need to Know About the Global Tech Outage.

While service is slowly recovering, flights are still being canceled and delays can stretch for hours. Here’s the latest on airlines, airports and cruises, as well as your rights and how to reach customer service.

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By Derek M. Norman Christine Chung and Ceylan Yeğinsu

• July 19, 2024

While commercial air service was slowly recovering on Friday after a technology outage caused thousands of flights worldwide to be canceled or delayed, the ripple effect from the disruption left airports crowded with passengers and airlines working to get planes and crews back in position.

“These flights, they run so tightly, so back to back, that even after a root cause is addressed, you can still be feeling those impacts throughout the day,” said Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, in an appearance on CNBC.

The outage was caused by a flawed update from the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, whose software is widely used around the world. At United Airlines, for example, the outage affected technology used to calculate aircraft weight, check in customers and operate call-center phone systems.

Throughout Friday, messages that travelers posted on social media showed flights grounded worldwide, some terminal monitors down and crowds of stranded passengers waiting at airport gates and customer service desks. At airports in India and South Korea, some passengers stood in long lines to obtain handwritten boarding passes .

Are flights still grounded?

Since the initial outage, service is slowly resuming, but the number of global delays and cancellations has continued to increase throughout the day.

Worldwide, around 110,000 commercial flights were scheduled on Friday, and around 5,117 of those flights, or 4.6 percent, have been canceled, according to Cirium, an aviation data company. In the United States, the number of cancellations stood at more than 2,300 — or about 9 percent of daily flights — as of Friday afternoon.

Fewer than half of the flights today in the United States left on time, the others departing with delays of a half-hour or longer, according to Cirium.

Delays at some airports in the United States were well beyond an hour, according to data from the Federal Aviation Administration. The average delays at Kennedy International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, the world’s busiest airport, were nearly three hours.

Which airlines are most affected?

In the United States, at least five carriers — Allegiant Air, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Spirit Airlines and United — temporarily grounded flights, according to the F.A.A .

As of about 4 p.m. Eastern, more than 830 Delta flights had been canceled, and more than 1,220 had been delayed. American was reporting more than 360 flights canceled and more than 1,040 delayed. More than 380 United flights had been canceled and more than 1,260 were delayed, according to FlightAware.

The Dutch airline KLM canceled around 41 percent of flights on Friday, according to FlightAware. It has begun to recover, but advises passengers to check their flight status online before traveling. “We urge passengers not to come to the airport if their flight is not departing or is severely delayed,” the airline said in a statement.

Why weren’t some airlines, like Southwest, affected?

Southwest, Alaska Airlines and JetBlue Airways barely scrapped any flights on Friday. A spokesperson for Southwest said, “The outage did not directly affect our operations,” but did not elaborate on why.

Alaska does not use CrowdStrike, and its operations were “mostly unimpacted,” said Tricia Bruckbauer, a spokeswoman for the airline.

Which airports have been hit the worst?

In the United States, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta appeared to have the most flights affected by the outage, with a total of more than 590 incoming and outgoing flights canceled and more than 780 flights delayed as of midafternoon on Friday, according to FlightAware .

Many other airports, including hubs in New York, Chicago and Charlotte, N.C., also appeared to experience significant disruption. J.F.K. advised passengers not to show up to the airport without confirming flight status.

The outage also affected major airports in Europe. Several airlines at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam were unable to gain access to their check-in systems. The systems have since restarted, and the airport said it was working with airlines to “get all passengers to their destinations as quickly as possible.”

London’s busiest airports, Heathrow and Gatwick, said they were using contingency systems to get around the outage, but both were still reporting delays for almost half of their incoming and outgoing scheduled flights.

Hong Kong International Airport had to switch to manual check-in, but the airport reported that flight operations were not affected .

I’m flying today. What can I do?

Pack patience.

Delta , United , American , and Spirit have issued flight waivers allowing passengers to rebook without any additional fees. The terms and applicable airports vary. Generally, passengers are required to depart within a week.

Travelers can usually check itineraries through the airline’s website or app, but some travelers on Friday reported difficulties rebooking through the Delta and United apps.

You can also contact airline customer service by phone, though travelers posting on social media said that they had not been able to reach agents. But there are a few tricks you can try aside from the primary hotline: U.S. airlines have overseas customer service phone lines, easily found on the internet, and those agents can help too.

FlightAware can offer detailed data about delays and cancellations, and which airports are most affected, in real time.

What are my rights if my flight is delayed or canceled?

You may be entitled to certain compensation — such as airline-provided hotel or meal vouchers — detailed on the Transportation Department’s Airline Customer Service Dashboard .

The Transportation Department said the software outage is considered within airlines’ control and that airlines must follow through on their commitments to travelers, which for most United States-based carriers include complimentary ground transportation and accommodation for those affected by overnight delays and cancellations, as well as meal vouchers for waits exceeding three hours. Travelers should not expect to have this compensation offered to them, but are within their rights to ask the airlines for it.

“We have reminded the airlines of their responsibilities to take care of passengers if they experience major delays,” Mr. Buttigieg said in his CNBC appearance on Friday.

Passengers’ rights can differ for international flights . For example, in the European Union, cancellations or long delays may give you the right to a refund, a replacement flight and financial compensation. Passengers on flights delayed overnight may receive reimbursement for food, accommodations and ground transportation. (Travelers should hold on to any receipts for costs incurred.)

I have a cruise to catch. Will I get a refund if I miss the ship?

Cruise lines typically do not provide refunds, rebooking or any other concessions if flight disruptions cause travelers to miss their cruise departure, and the large companies are not making exceptions now.

But things look brighter for Carnival and Royal Caribbean passengers who booked their airfare through the cruise lines. Should they miss their departure, those travelers can expect benefits including coverage for flights, hotels and ground transportation to get them to the next port of call.

“Regrettably, air service disruptions — whether technological or weather — are beyond our company’s control,” said Chris Chiames, the chief communication officer for Carnival. “We always encourage our guests to purchase travel insurance, and today’s news is an important reminder of why.”

I have travel insurance. Am I covered?

Travel insurance companies are expecting an influx of claims, mostly for delays and missed connections, as a result of the outage.

One agency, InsureMyTrip , anticipated more than 1,600 of its customers could be affected by the outage, said Suzanne Morrow, the company’s chief executive. Policyholders may be entitled to coverage for their expenses related to delays, as well as coverage for any missed connecting flights, she said.

Any travelers hoping to file a travel insurance claim related to the outage should make sure to keep all their receipts or bills to show proof of purchase, as well as check their insurance plan or policy and file a claim right away.

Mark Walker contributed reporting from Washington.

Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram and sign up for our weekly Travel Dispatch newsletter to get expert tips on traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Dreaming up a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 Places to Go in 2024 .

Derek M. Norman is a senior news assistant for the International section of The Times. More about Derek M. Norman

Christine Chung is a Times reporter covering airlines and consumer travel. More about Christine Chung

Ceylan Yeğinsu is a travel reporter for The Times who frequently writes about the cruise industry and Europe, where she is based. More about Ceylan Yeğinsu