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Smoke and Medical Evacuation of a Crew Member on Carnival Sensation

Submitted by kgnadmin on

A crew member who was in need of urgent shoreside medical care was airlifted from Carnival Sensation by the US Coast Guard on February 9. The cruise ship which was sailing towards Cozumel was diverted to Key West, Florida to rendezvous with a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter for a medical evacuation. Because of the medical emergency, the stop to Cozumel was canceled.

A letter was distributed among guests signed by Carnival Sensation Captain Gaspare Marzullo saying

One of our members was in need of urgent medical attention ashore. Early this morning, we returned to Key West area to conduct a helicopter evacuation with the US Coast Guard.

As a result of the delay, we will not be able to visit Cozumel today and will have a fun day at sea instead. Fortunately, we have secured a visit to Nassau tomorrow...Thank you for your understanding. Please enjoy all the entertainment and fun activities my team has planned for you today" 

Cruise Law News reports that two days after the medevac there was a fire (smoke) onboard Carnival Sensation. The fire reportedly started on the last night of the cruise around 3:00 a.m on deck 6 aft. Some passengers were awakened by the sound on the PA system and several were seen with life vests in the corridor.

“Smoke was so thick you could not see. All floors above 6 on rear of ship had smoke even lido fire doors were closed and area was full of smoke.” Says one passenger.

Carnival Cruise Line released the following comment “I do apologize but to let you know, there was no fire onboard. Smoke was coming from a housekeeping storage area on Deck 6, but when first responders arrived, they confirmed there was no fire.”

Following this comment by Carnival, Amanda Jackson, producer at CNN, who was onboard Carnival Sensation posted on Twitter the audio recording of the Cruise Director saying the “fire is under control.”