The Norwegian Sun cruise ship hit a small iceberg during its voyage in Alaska on Saturday. As a result, the ship was forced to skip its Skagway port of call and head directly to Juneau for the damage to be assessed.
A cruise spokesperson told USA TODAY that, “while transiting to Hubbard Glacier in Alaska, Norwegian Sun was engulfed by dense fog, limiting visibility and resulting in the ship making contact with a growler.”
According to the US National Ocean Service, growlers are fragments of ice roughly the size of a truck or grand piano. They extend less than three feet above the sea surface and occupy an area of about 215 square feet.
When trapped air escapes as the iceberg melts, it sometimes makes a sound like the growl of an animal, hence the name.
“The ship remains fully operational and is currently in Juneau, Alaska for assessment,” the spokesperson said. “Additional information will be provided as appropriate.” They did not say whether any passengers or crew members had been injured.
Passengers were reported to have felt shuddering and rattling noises that may have been related to the ice impact.
The ship was in Juneau as scheduled on Monday but there has been no official assessment of the damage.
Depending on the outcome of a dive inspection, it is possible the ship may be cleared to resume normal operations and continue on to Skagway.
The remainder of the current itinerary has the ship visiting Ketchikan on Tuesday, June 28, and Victoria, British Columbia, on Wednesday, June 29.
The cruise line did not comment regarding any course changes.
First published at Travel Industry Today
First published at TravelNewsHub.com – Global Travel News