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The Norwegian Escape ran aground in the Caribbean on Monday (March 14) after departing from Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. The 164,000-ton ship hit the channel bed, causing damage to the hull. The Escape left Orlando on March 12 on a seven-day journey to several islands in the Caribbean.
There were no reports of injuries to passengers or crew members.
Crews managed to refloat the massive ship, which can hold up to 4,000 passengers and brought it back to the dock. The passengers were able to stay on board the ship during the ordeal and are making the best of the situation.
Several passengers spoke with WKMG and said the people were in good spirits despite their trip coming to an abrupt end.
"Other than us being docked, you wouldn't know there's a problem," Jason Vandyke said.
"Hanging out, having a blast," said Kevin Hipes. "I wish we were going out to the other islands, but you know we're on a boat with nothing but fun people and a lot of restaurants."
The cruise line is working with officials in the Dominican Republic to help get all the passengers back home on charter flights. There have been a few snags because the Dominican Republic won't let people off the ship without a passport. Because passengers were only required to show their driver's license to board the cruise liner, not everybody brought their passports with them.
"We learned about an hour ago that the Dominican Republic government is not allowing at this time for passengers traveling without a passport to disembark," Ben Wills told the news station.
Despite the issues, Norwegian said it expects everybody to be able to return home in the next few days.
Norwegian canceled the rest of the cruise and also canceled the next planned trip, which was scheduled to depart on March 19. Passengers were given a full refund and credit for another cruise in the future.