by Donald Wood
Last updated: 10:21 AM ET, Wed July 17, 2019
Update: July 17, 2019 at 4:45 p.m. ET
Royal Caribbean International announced Wednesday the Harmony of the Seas would skip its scheduled stop in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and would instead make a call in St. Maarten.
According to NBCNews.com, Royal Caribbean officials said the stop in San Juan was canceled due to safety concerns for passengers as massive protests are expected Wednesday night, with Puerto Ricans calling for the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rossello.
Due to the ongoing protests against the governor in Puerto Rico, Royal Caribbean International announced it canceled a planned stop in San Juan Tuesday.
According to the Miami Herald, Royal Caribbean's Empress of the Seas was rerouted to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands after protestors marched in San Juan to call for the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rossello.
The Empress of the Seas departed from Miami Saturday with planned stops in CocoCay, the Bahamas; San Juan; Tortola; and Saint Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. As a result of skipping Puerto Rico, guests received refunds for prepaid shore excursions.
"In light of current unrest in San Juan, Puerto Rico, we have canceled today's call to San Juan," Royal Caribbean spokesman Owen Torres told the Miami Herald. "Empress of the Seas has been re-routed to Tortola, and our guests will receive refunds for prepaid shore excursions. We continue to monitor the situation closely and will make adjustments as necessary to ensure the safety and security of our guests and crew."
The calls for the resignation of Rossello come after hundreds of pages of a profane group chat were leaked and the FBI arrested two of his top former officials on corruption charges.
Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas is scheduled to arrive in San Juan Wednesday, but it remains unclear if the stop will be changed. Carnival Corporation officials also told the Miami Herald it does not plan to make any changes to its San Juan service.
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