Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Carnival Cruise Ship Stranded Gulf of Mexico

Passengers aboard a cruise vessel stranded in the Gulf of Mexico after a weekend engine fire have limited access to bathrooms, food and hot coffee, but also a new destination: Mobile, Ala.


Carnival Cruise Lines President and CEO Gerry Cahill said in a statement Monday that the Carnival Triumph had drifted so far north of its original position that it will be towed to the southern U.S. port, instead of the original plan to take it to Progreso, Mexico.



Cahill said strong Gulf currents caused the Triumph to drift about 90 miles north of its original position off the Yucatan Peninsula.



Cahill's statement said the ship should arrive in Mobile on Thursday and that the change will allow for less complicated re-entry for passengers without passports.



CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg said on "CBS This Morning" that the waste management system was powered by electricity, and with electricity out on the ship, there is a danger of it turning into "a floating biohazard" before it reaches Alabama.