(CNN) -- Passengers on a Carnival cruise ship
drifting in the Gulf of Mexico aren't getting the vacation they expected
-- sleeping on its decks, making do with a few working toilets, and
doing what they can to get food -- all due to a weekend engine fire left
the vessel dead in the water.
The Carnival Triumph was
about 150 miles off the coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, heading
back Sunday morning to Galveston, Texas -- where it had departed
Thursday on a four-day trip -- when a fire broke out in an engine room,
according to Carnival Cruise Lines.
The ship's automatic fire
extinguishing system kicked in and soon contained the flames, and no
injuries were reported, Carnival reported.
Yet this fire left the
ship -- and its 3,143 passengers and 1,086 crew members -- adrift
without propulsion, the cruise line said, halting its trip back to port.
The first of two tugboats
that will tow the ship to Mobile, Alabama, arrived on Monday evening,
the cruise line said in a statement. The ship should arrive in the Gulf
city some time Thursday.
Not being able to sail,
though, is just one of the problems. Issues with running water, scarce
electricity and more contributed to headaches big and small, according
to passengers and their loved ones.
Toby Barlow's wife Ann
told him there was "sewage running down the walls and floors" with
passengers being asked to defecate in bags and urinate in showers due to
a lack of functioning toilets. Food lines ran 3½ hours long and some,
like herself, slept outside to keep cool.
"Elderly and handicap(ped people) are struggling," she texted her husband. "The smells are gross."
Brent Nutt said his wife, Bethany -- who is on board, and whom he talked to Sunday -- reported similar problems.
"She said they had no
power, no running water, and she said she hadn't been able to eat
anything yet. Then you call the Carnival phone number for families, and
they tell you that everything is all right," Nutt told CNN.
Posts to CruiseCritic.com,
which bills itself as an "interactive community of avid and first-time
cruisers," documented similar issues with power and more. Some posts,
though, were more light-hearted.
"They are all fine,"
wrote one woman, whose sister is on board. "Said they are still having
fun and gave me the task to call her boss who seems to think I was
lying."
Carnival spokesman Vance Gulliksen acknowledged issues, while noting the cruise line's efforts to address the situation.
Some people are camping out on the decks because some cabins don't have air conditioning, he said Monday evening.
And Gulliksen pointed to
recent progress. For instance, "we have restored toilets in some public
areas and cabins;" there is running water for showers, even if it's
cold; and some elevators are working.
As for the food
situation, he said the Triumph's poolside restaurant has "limited food
service" and meals have been brought aboard from two other Carnival
ships. Earlier Monday, the cruise line said in a statement that there
was hot coffee available, among other options.
"All our guests are
safe, and we're doing everything we can to make them as comfortable as
possible," Carnival CEO Gerry Cahill said in a statement issued at 8:30
p.m. ET Monday. "We're terribly sorry for the inconvenience, discomfort
and frustration our guests are feeling."
Besides the two Carnival
vessels that have come to transfer supplies -- and, in one case, take
on a passenger with a pre-existing medical condition, said Gulliksen --
the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Vigorous is on-site to aid the stranded ship.
"It's in deep water and not near any hazards to navigation," said Greg Magee, the commander of the Vigorous.
The ship was initially
expected to be towed into the northern Yucatan port of Progreso, Mexico.
But the ship had already drifted about 90 miles north due to strong
currents by Monday night, prompting the decision to instead move the
Triumph to Mobile.
Carnival said Mobile and
Progreso were then roughly equidistant, adding that strong currents
toward the Alabama shore and a "simpler re-entry" -- especially for the
900 passengers without passports -- also drove the decision to head to
the U.S. coast.
After being towed to
port, those aboard the Carnival Triumph will be flown home at no cost to
them, the cruise line said. They will also get a full refund, credit
that can be used toward a future trip and reimbursement for all
expenses, except casino and gift shop purchases, for their current trip.
The vessel's next two
departures, scheduled for Monday and Saturday, have been canceled. Those
slated to be on those trips will get full refunds and discounts toward
future cruises, the cruise line said.
Family and friends of those on board may call 888-290-5095 or 305-406-5534 for information.
Throughout the ordeal, Barlow said his wife Ann has kept her sense of humor despite being stranded.
"I joked with her that I
got the raw end of the deal. I was stuck in Texas with all (the) kids
going to watch midget wrestling while she was on a cruise this weekend
with her girlfriends," he said. "When I talked to her (Sunday) night, I
reminded her maybe I got the better end of the deal," he said.
