Tag Archives: Palm Beach

Cruise ship chartered for relief mission in St. Thomas

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Grand Celebration.

Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line said its ship has been chartered to the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) to assist hurricane-recovery efforts in St. Thomas.

The Grand Celebration will head for the storm-stricken destination in the U.S. Virgin Islands with arrival anticipated on Sept. 23. The mission is expected to continue into the later part of December, with Grand Celebration resuming its two-day cruises to Freeport from the Port of Palm Beach on Dec. 23.

St. Thomas was devastated by Hurricane Irma and is in line for more hurricane-force winds from Hurricane Maria. While in St. Thomas, the ship will be used to house National Guard first responders.

Image result for St. Thomas hurricane damage

“We will be reaching out to all of our guests and travel partners this week,” said Bahamas Paradise CEO Oneil Khosa. “We feel badly about this 90-day disruption but believe the extensive needs of the St. Thomas people to be of greater importance at this time.”

Guests who have already booked cruises during the next few months through travel partners should contact their agents about rebooking or refunds. Those who booked direct can call the customer service department at (800) 374-4363.

The Grand Celebration, originally the Carnival Celebration, has 750 cabins and space for up to 1,900 guests.

Coast Guard Medevacs Man From Carnival Cruise Ship

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It was the Coast Guard to the rescue when a man suffered a stroke on a Carnival cruise ship off the coast of Palm Beach. (Source: Coast Guard)

It was the Coast Guard to the rescue when a man suffered a stroke on a Carnival cruise ship off the coast of Palm Beach. (Source: Coast Guard)

MIAMI (CBSMiami) — A 71-year-old man was medevaced from a cruise ship Saturday by the Coast Guard, approximately 22 miles east of Palm Beach.

The crew of the Carnival cruise ship Sensation, requested the medevac around 7pm and reported the man was suffering from symptoms of a stroke.

A Coast Guard flight surgeon was briefed on the situation and recommended the man be medevaced immediately.

A crew aboard an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Miami was launched to hoist the passenger. Once hoisted, the 71-year-old man was taken to Broward General Hospital.

His condition is unknown at this time.

Ship originally built for Carnival to replace damaged Bahamas Celebration

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It’s official: Florida’s Port of Palm Beach will be getting a replacement ship for Bahamas Celebration, which was damaged after striking an object when sailing from Freeport Oct. 31.

Grand Celebration, built in 1987 as Celebration for Carnival Cruise Lines, is to begin operating as early as February for the newly named Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, the Port of Palm Beach confirmed Tuesday. The ship will depart every other day on two-night Bahamas round-trips and offer cruise and resort vacation packages of four to eight nights.

‘This is a tremendous day for the Port of Palm Beach and Palm Beach County,’ executive port director Manuel Almira said.

According to port chairman Edward Oppel, the agreement for a new multi-day cruise vessel will generate an average of nearly $3.9m of annual net revenue and significant spending for Palm Beach County.

The 47,000gt Grand Celebration can carry about 1,800 passengers, about the same as the ship it’s replacing. Most recently Grand Celebration was named Costa Celebration and, previously under operation by Iberocruceros, Grand Celebration.

It recently underwent a €4.5m refurbishment. Carnival Corp. & plc management referred to the ship’s sale during Friday’s earnings call. CFO David Bernstein said the sale had a 0.3% impact on overall costs, on an available lower berth day basis, in the fourth quarter

Bahamas Celebration, which grounded on Halloween night outside Freeport with no injuries, had entered Grand Bahama Shipyard for repairs. The vessel was built in 1981 and previously sailed as Prinsesse Ragnhild for Color Line before undergoing a major conversion in 2009 to begin Bahamas cruises from Florida. At 36,000gt, it is smaller than Grand Celebration.

Grand Celebration has 10 public decks and 751 cabins, more than 60% with ocean views. There are 14 terrace suites. The pool deck has five pools and Jacuzzis. Other public areas include a spa and fitness center, five restaurants and a casino.

The Port of Palm Beach said the ship’s 950-seat ‘performance center’ will stage big-name concerts.