The words “Titanic moment” may be the last thing you want to hear on a ship, but that was the phrase used by a passenger on the Carnival Spirit cruise ship last week after the ship unexpectedly hit an iceberg.
No one on board was injured and the ship was not damaged in the incident, which a Carnival Cruise Line spokesperson described as the ship hitting “a drifting chunk of ice.” The Carnival Spirit was sailing in Tracy Arm Fjord, Alaska, a waterway south of the city of Juneau known for its dramatic beauty and chunks of floating ice.
Videos of the incident circulated on social media afterwards, with many passengers filming the moment the ship collided with the iceberg.
Cruise ships and problems for the local population seem to continue around the world.
@pairofjokers.18 That time our cruise ship hit an iceberg. #foryoupage #carnival #carnivalspirit #titanic #fyp #trachyarmfjord #alaska #onlyinalaska ♬ My Heart Will Go On (Love Theme from “Titanic”) – Céline Dion
They hit and spent several hours assessing the damage
Cassandra Goskie posted a video on TikTok in which a voice can be heard saying: “If we die, it was worth it, it’s a Titanic moment,” shortly before the ship hit the iceberg.
Meanwhile, passenger Saurabh Singhal described in a Facebook post that the ship was stopped “for hours to assess the damage”.
“The assessment found that there was no damage to the ship’s hull and the ship continued its cruise and there was no impact on operations,” a Carnival spokesperson told CNN Travel.
The Carnival Spirit completed its seven-day nonstop Alaska cruise on Tuesday, returning to Seattle, Washington. Since then, the ship has embarked on another round trip to Alaska, this time for 14 days.
@cass_goskie 9/5/24 Carnival Spirit hit an iceberg. It didn’t do any damage that caused us to use any emergency procedures. The crew did an amazing job at accessing the damage and keeping all of its crew and passengers safe and informed! #greenscreenvideo #alaskacruise #carnivalcruise #iceberg #fyp #icebergincident #cruiseaccident #titanic #carnivalspirit ♬ original sound – Cassandra Goskie
Alaskan iceberg collision and cruises
In 2022, the Norwegian Cruise Line ship Norwegian Sun struck an iceberg while sailing in Alaska, damaging its starboard bow. There were no injuries. Alaska is a popular cruise destination, but there has reportedly been a backlash in recent years from locals concerned about overcrowding of the region’s waterways.
Alaskan waters are also known as some of the most difficult for cruise ships to navigate. “This ice is hard and can cause damage to the hull or propellers,” Capt. John Herring, a Southeast Alaska marine pilot who boards ships in the region to help ensure safe passage, told CNN Travel in 2022.
“Strong winds and currents make navigating the icy waters even more difficult,” he noted.