Updated: Texan judge issues arrest warrant against Carnival Triumph - Bloomberg

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Published: 31 March 2012 31 March 2012

Updated: According to Galveston Daily News, the Carnival Triumph set sail only 45 minutes late for its scheduled 4:00 pm departure time.

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An arrest warrant was issued yesterday for the Carnival Triumph, a 2,758-passenger cruise liner based in Galveston, Texas, that is owned by the same company that owns the Costa Concordia, according to the lawsuit also filed yesterday in federal court in Galveston by the family of Siglinde Stumpf. Carnival Triumph provides year-round service from the Houston area to multiple ports in the Caribbean and Mexico, according to Carnival’s website.

A Carnival Cruise Lines' cruise ship was ordered held in a Texas port by a U.S. judge in a $10 million lawsuit filed by the family of a German tourist who died aboard the Costa Concordia shipwreck off the Italian coast, the Bloomberg news agency reports.

"The court finds that the conditions for an attachment of defendants’ joint and collective property within this district, mainly the MS Carnival Triumph, appear to exist upon an admiralty and maritime claim," U.S. Magistrate Judge John Froeschner of Galveston said in the warrant.

The Carnival Triumph will be allowed to unload passengers and cargo and move between berths within the port until a "prompt hearing" can be scheduled, at which "the plaintiff shall be required to show why the attachment and garnishment should not be vacated," according to the order.

Carnival Cruise Lines is part of the Carnival Corp & plc group that also owns Costa Crociere. Carnival Triumph, which is of 101,509 gross tons, was built in Italy in 1999.

 

 

Updated: Teams onboard Azamara Quest continue to assess the damage caused by the engine fire

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines

Published: 31 March 2012 31 March 2012

Updated statement, April 2, 2012:

"Teams onboard Azamara Quest continue to assess the damage caused by the engine fire. Unfortunately, the damage required us to cancel the rest of Azamara Quest's current voyage. We anticipate receiving a full assessment late this evening that will provide us with sufficient information to make a decision regarding the next voyage.

We encourage guests on the April 12, 2012, sailing of Azamara Quest to monitor this website on Tuesday, April 3 for an update on your voyage.

If you have specific questions regarding Azamara Quest, you may call toll free 1.888.829.4050 from the United States and Canada. Guest outside the United States may call direct or collect to 1.408.916.9001."

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Updated statement: April 1, 2012, 10:30 a.m. E.S.T.

"Azamara Quest arrived at Sandakan (Sabah), Malaysia, on April 1, 2012, at approximately 9:23 p.m. local time.

The one crew member that was more severely injured will be immediately transferred to a local area hospital. Guests had the option of staying onboard the ship while it is docked in Sandakan, or being transferred to a local area hotel until they continue on their vacation.

Larry Pimentel, president and chief executive officer, will be flying to Sandakan in order to meet with Azamara Quest guests and crew personally. Mr. Pimentel is scheduled to arrive in Malaysia tomorrow morning, local time.

“I would like to sincerely thank our amazing Azamara Quest guests for their patience and understanding,” said Larry Pimentel, president and chief executive officer of Azamara Club Cruises. “We understand that this was a difficult journey, and we appreciate their upbeat and positive attitude. We look forward to welcoming them back soon.”

“I would also like to commend the crew onboard Azamara Quest, not just for their valiant and courageous efforts during the fire, but for the way they have worked tirelessly to make our guests as happy and comfortable as possible until the ship arrived in port. The entire crew has been absolutely brilliant, and I couldn’t be prouder of the exemplary way each and every one of them responded to this incident.”

The damage caused by the fire will require us to cancel the rest of Azamara Quest’s voyage once the ship arrives in Sandakan. We encourage guests on the April 12, 2012, sailing of Azamara Quest to monitor this website on Monday, April 2 for an update on your voyage."

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Updated statement: March 31, 2012, 6:30 p.m. E.S.T.

"Azamara Quest is currently located 100 nautical miles from Sandakan (Sabah), Malaysia, and is traveling at a speed of approximately six knots. Based on this speed, the ship is expected to arrive in Sandakan at 10:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 1, local time. Larry Pimentel, president and chief executive officer of Azamara Club Cruises, is in route to Sandakan in order to meet with Azamara Quest guests and crew personally.

Unfortunately, the ship has not been able to restore power to the air conditioning compressors. While this is a very difficult undertaking, the onboard team is diligently working to resolve this issue. The guest sentiment onboard continues to be calm and upbeat.

The damage caused by the fire will require us to cancel the rest of Azamara Quest’s voyage once the ship arrives in Sandakan. We encourage guests on the April 12, 2012, sailing of Azamara Quest to monitor this website on Monday, April 2 for an update on your voyage.

If you have specific questions regarding Azamara Quest, you may call toll free 1.888.829.4050 from the United States and Canada. Guest outside the United States may call direct or collect to 1.408.916.9001."

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Updated statement: Engineers onboard Azamara Quest have been able to restore propulsion to the ship.

Azamara Quest is currently sailing directly to Sandakan (Sabah), Malaysia at between three to six knots. Based on this speed, the ship is expected to arrive in Sandakan within 24 to 48 hours.

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Updated statement: Engineers onboard Azamara Quest continue to work on restoring propulsion to the ship. Once they have restored the ship’s propulsion, Azamara Quest will sail directly to Sandakan (Sabah), Malaysia. When propulsion has been restored to the ship, we will be able to provide an estimated time of arrival. Until then, we will be working with our guests to determine how we can best assist them with next steps and travel arrangements.

Larry Pimentel, president and chief executive officer, will be flying to Sandakan in order to meet with Azamara Quest guests personally. Mr. Pimentel is scheduled to arrive in Malaysia on Monday morning, local time.

Unfortunately, five crew members onboard the ship suffered smoke inhalation during the fire. The crew members are being treated in our medical facility. However, one crew member is more seriously injured and requires additional and urgent medical attention that can only be provided in a hospital. Once the ship arrives in Sandakan, the crew member will be immediately transported to a local area hospital.

The damage caused by the fire will require us to cancel the rest of Azamara Quest’s voyage once the ship arrives in Sandakan. We encourage guests on the April 12, 2012, sailing of Azamara Quest to monitor this website on Monday, April 2 for an update on your voyage.

If you have specific questions regarding Azamara Quest, you may call toll free 1.888.829.4050 from the United States and Canada. Guest outside the United States may call direct or collect to 1.408.916.9001.

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Engineers onboard Azamara Quest have restored power to one of the ship's engines. This additional power has permitted the ship to reestablish air conditioning, running water, plumbing, refrigeration and food preparation onboard for the comfort of our guests and crew. While the ship does not have propulsion capabilities at this time, it is in the process of being repaired.

As you may be aware, on Friday, March 30, at approximately 8:19 p.m. ship time, Azamara Quest experienced a fire in one of ship's engine rooms. The fire was contained to that engine room and was quickly extinguished. There were no injuries of guests reported and the atmosphere aboard is calm. However, in an abundance of caution, the Captain deemed it necessary to muster all guests at their assembly stations. The ship is currently running on emergency power until full power can be restored to the engine room.

Azamara Quest is still located 200 miles off the coast of Balikpapan (Borneo), Indonesia, in calm seas.

Azamara Quest is currently on a 17-night sailing that departed Hong Kong, China, on Monday, March 26, and includes port calls to Manila, Philippines; Balikpapan (Borneo), Palapo (Sulawesi), Benoa Bali, Semarang and Komodo, Indonesia and concludes in Singapore on Thursday, April 12.

Azamara Club Cruises will continue to closely monitor the situation onboard Azamara Quest.