Passenger Records Cruise Ship Colliding With Moorings As It Docked

The Norwegian Epic cruise ship collided with two moorings while trying to dock in San Juan, Puerto Rico after suffering mechanical problems during its seven-day journey through the Eastern Caribbean. The collision caused damage to the hull of the massive ship and made both of the moorings snap and sink into the water.

A passenger on another ship already docked at the port captured the Epic slowly being pulled into the port and striking the moorings.

“That’s gonna hit. That’s gonna hit!” said the person who recorded the video as the ship slowly drifted towards the pier. As the mooring sinks into the water, other people can be heard cheering.

A second video taken by a New Orleans couple who was standing on their balcony aboard the Epic showed the mangled walkway that was connected to the mooring.

The ship was not supposed to stop in Puerto Rico but was diverted after experiencing mechanical problems. One of the passengers, Dalton Hunter, told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he noticed the ship was traveling extremely slowly and that two days before docking in San Juan, one of the engines had failed.

No one was injured in the collision. Norwegian issued a statement explaining that the accident was caused by high winds and that they are working to assess the damage done to the pier.

“Prevailing winds caused the ship to veer towards the pier, damaging two mooring points at Pier 3 East,” said a spokesperson for Norwegian Cruise Line. “No injuries have been reported, and guests are currently disembarking the ship as previously scheduled. We are working closely with local authorities to assess the damage.”

The damage to the vessel was repaired by the next day and the ship continued to its final port of call, Great Stirrup Cay in The Bahamas.


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