ACTION IS TO FURTHER
INCREASE OPERATING REDUNDANCIES
AND BACK-UP SYSTEMS
MIAMI (March 19, 2013) – Carnival Cruise Lines has announced the first
implementation phase of its fleetwide comprehensive operational review,
focused on Carnival
Triumph, as well as Carnival Sunshine, which is currently undergoing a
previously scheduled dry dock for product enhancements.
The cruise line
is making significant investments to enhance the level of operating
redundancies and the scope of hotel services
that can run on emergency power, and further improve each ship’s fire
prevention, detection and suppression systems.
Given the necessary lead time to source needed materials and implement
the enhancements, Carnival will extend the current out-of-service period
for these two ships.
Carnival Triumph will now return to service on June 3, 2013, with a
total of 10 additional cruises being canceled. Guests on the affected
voyages will receive
a full refund, reimbursement for non-refundable transportation costs
and a 25 percent discount on a future four- to five-day cruise.
Carnival Sunshine, which is currently undergoing a multi-week dry dock
to complete a comprehensive full-ship makeover, will now enter service
May 5, 2013, following
the cancellation of two European cruises. Guests on the canceled
Carnival Sunshine voyages will receive a full refund, plus reimbursement
for any non-refundable travel costs. Additionally, they will receive a
25 percent discount on a future cruise. The
additional time out of service will allow for implementation of the
enhanced operating redundancies and other measures.
“We sincerely regret canceling these cruises and disrupting our guests’
vacation plans,” said Gerry Cahill, Carnival Cruise Lines’ president
and CEO. “We are fully committed to applying the recommendations
stemming from our fleetwide review and to make whatever investments are
needed despite the difficult decision to impact people’s vacations.”
Cahill continued, “Our team of experts has worked virtually around the
clock to determine the best set of solutions and rapidly develop an
effective implementation
plan for both of these ships. Moving forward, we will have the ability
to source materials and schedule improvements much more expediently,
thus minimizing the scheduling impact on other vessels.
“I
would like to provide continued assurances that all of our vessels have
fully effective safety systems, equipment and training in place.
Additionally, our ships receive
regular inspections from the United States Coast Guard and other
regulatory authorities. The changes we are implementing are focused
primarily on improvements to better support continued power and hotel
services should unexpected issues arise. In addition,
we are applying new learnings and making enhancements in the area of
fire suppression and extinguishing.
Going forward, the review will
focus on the balance of our fleet. While this process will take time,
it is our highest priority and has the full support
and resources of Carnival Cruise Lines and Carnival Corporation,”
Cahill said.
Carnival
Triumph operates year-round four- and five-day Mexico cruises from
Galveston, Texas. Four-day cruises depart Thursdays and visit Cozumel
while five-day cruises depart
Mondays and Saturdays and call at Cozumel and Progreso, Mexico.
Carnival
Sunshine is scheduled to operate a series of nine- and 12-day
Mediterranean cruises May 5 to Oct. 20, 2013, either round-trip from
Barcelona or sailing between Barcelona
and Venice. The ship will sail on a 16-day trans-Atlantic crossing
from Barcelona to New Orleans Nov. 1-17, positioning the vessel for a
special six-day Caribbean cruise departing Nov. 18 followed by the
launch of year-round seven-day Caribbean service from
New Orleans Nov. 24, 2013.
Guests on impacted voyages may contact their travel agent or 1-800-CARNIVAL for assistance.
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