On the evening of Friday, June 7, 2019, Carnival's largest and newest cruise ship-the Horizon-came to the rescue of seven men aboard a small fishing boat adrift off the coast of Haiti in the Caribbean.
While on the last leg of an eight-day southern Caribbean cruise, sailing from its final port of call in Aruba back to its home port in Miami, the Horizon received word from the U.S. Coast Guard of a stranded vessel nearby and took action.
In Carnival Cruise Line's statement to Florida's WPLG Local 10 News, the company confirmed:
"Continuing its longstanding tradition of assisting mariners in distress, Carnival Horizon was alerted to a small craft in need of assistance. Following the direction of the U.S. Coast Guard, Carnival Horizon diverted its course and participated in a search and rescue mission, bringing several passengers from the craft on board."
The craft had, indeed, come from nearby Haiti and was outfitted with only a small propeller engine, which had broken down, and handmade bamboo oars to power its movement. The seven fishermen had already been stuck out at sea for two days.
According to passengers' posts on Twitter, crew workers were the first to spot the boat upon reaching the assigned coordinates and immediately notified the ship's captain and cruise director. One tweet notes that the ship made contact about ten minutes later, as passengers snapped photos and videos of the event on their smartphones.
Carnival's statement continued, "The passengers were given food, water and medical treatment. There is no expected impact to the ship's arrival on Sunday."
Horizon's unexpected guests are to be handed over to U.S. authorities upon arrival in Miami today.
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