Cruise Ship’s Engine Room Issue Leaves Hundreds of Passengers Stranded

Hundreds of passengers on a cruise ship sailing off the southern coast of Australia were stranded after the vessel lost power Thursday morning.

According to News.com.au, Cruise & Maritime Voyages’ Vasco da Gama ship was sailing near Adelaide when the crew called for a controlled precautionary blackout after an alarm light came on in the vessel’s engine control room.

As mechanics on the Vasco da Gama worked to investigate the cause of the warning light, an estimated 830 passengers and 600 crew members were left without power for about two hours.

The captain of the ship called on local authorities, who dispatched tug boats to the area to keep the vessel from drifting. Officials from the cruise line said all of the precautionary post-incident checks were completed with no causes for concern identified.

While the power was back on within two hours, some of the passengers on board described the incident as serious, including a passenger identified by News.com.au as Ian.

“We can’t use the toilets, can’t cook, can’t go get something to eat because the kitchens won’t work,” Ian said. “Everything is electric.”

Once the ship regained power and all of the proper power checks were completed, the Vasco da Gama docked in Adelaide at around 10 a.m. local time, two hours after its scheduled arrival.