Passengers dodge flying deck furniture, cling to railings as cruise ship hit by freak storm
A fun, relaxing cruise turned into a nightmare for passengers after their cruise ship was hit by an unexpected storm.
Guests of the Royal Caribbean cruise ship were enjoying the weather on the pool deck of the ship Independence of the Sea, which had been docked at Port Canaveral in Florida on Friday, June 16, according to a report by Newsweek.
However, at around 4 pm in Florida, the ship was struck by strong winds that sent deck chairs and umbrellas flying and passengers running for safety.
The chaos was caught on camera by TikTok user Cora Cornett whose video now has over 14 million views. The clip shows passengers scrambling for cover and a staff member holding onto a patio umbrella in the background. Passengers can be heard screaming as a flying deck chair narrowly misses a woman carrying a toddler as she pulls an empty stroller behind her.
“It hit so fast and was gone in a matter of minutes!” stated Cornett in the caption of a second video. “No ship announcements were made before or after so people on the lower pool deck were hit completely without warning.”
Watch the clips below:
@cornettahh Small but mighty squall hit us before we even left Port Canaveral. The sun was shining just 10 minutes before! We were on the top deck watching another boat in port get hit with rain when suddenly it DISAPPEARED in the rain so we ran down to the next deck but it was already on us #independenceofthesea #cruiseship #royalcaribbean ♬ original sound – Cora Cornett
@cornettahh Another angle from the 6/16/23 squall that hit #independenceofthesea while docked in #PortCanaveral around 4pm. It hit so fast and was gone in a matter of minutes! No ship announcements were made before or after so people on the lower pool deck were hit completely without warning. 😳 #hurricaneseason #floridaweather #cruiseship #royalcaribbean #chaos #ocean #sea #squall ♬ original sound – Cora Cornett
User Lucassparrow1110 posted a video of the incident from another level, stating, “Just a fun evening leaving Port Canaveral this past Friday. No announcement from the captain before or after, also no mention of what happened. Just pretend like it didn’t happen I guess.”
In the clip, a man falls as he’s pushed by strong winds and deck chairs can be seen flying in the background. Perhaps unable to stand in the severe winds, a group of people cling to the railings and passengers scream as a chair almost hits a man crouched on the floor.
@lucassparrow1110 Just a fun evening leaving Port Canaveral this past Friday. No announcement from the captain before or after, also no mention of what happened. Just pretend like it didnt happen I guess. #portcanaveral #independenceoftheseas #noannouncement #dobetter #royalcaribbean #mikesweatherpage ♬ original sound – lucassparrow1110
“I was on here, too!” stated TikTok user Beth Brown Hyatt in the comments. “Couldn’t believe how quickly everything changed in a matter of seconds.”
In an email to Daily Hive, a representative for Royal Caribbean Cruises stated, “On Friday, June 16, while departing from Port Canaveral, Independence of the Seas encountered a sudden gust of high winds. This lasted for a brief period and there were no serious injuries to our guests or crew.
“Independence of the Seas continued its regularly scheduled 3-night itinerary, arriving to Perfect Day at CocoCay in The Bahamas, on Saturday morning, as scheduled.”
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