An unexpected storm snapped a cruise ship’s dock lines in Juneau on Monday, setting it adrift with several passengers on board.
JUNEAU, Alaska — What started as a 40th anniversary cruise for a couple from St. Augustine turned into an extraordinary event on Monday. A rare and intense storm hit the Celebrity Edge cruise ship, causing it to break free from its moorings and drift in the Juneau, Alaska harbor.
Tena Crook and her husband, who have been together since high school, were enjoying a clear day from their balcony on the 11th floor when the weather suddenly changed.
“It was like a wall of wind just slammed into us,” Crook recounted. “We stepped inside for merely two minutes, and when we returned, the rear of the ship had already detached from the dock.”
Cell phone video captured the chaos as heavy winds snapping the ship’s lines. In the footage, passengers can be heard shouting, “Look, look, they’re snapping!” followed by screams as the ship drifted away from the dock.
The captain issued a code “echo echo echo,” signaling the ship was adrift and crew members rushed to their emergency positions
“You start seeing all of the crew members just very determined, going to their positions,” Crook said. “We’re Floridians, we do hurricanes, but we’ve never seen cruise ship lines snap and then drift toward other cruise ships in the harbor. That was a new one.”
As the ship drifted dangerously close to other vessels, Crook said she and her husband tried to stay calm.
“We weren’t really scared for our safety at first, but it was nerve-wracking when we realized how close we were getting to the other ships,” she said.
It took four hours for the crew to regain control and safely re-dock the Celebrity Edge.
The storm forced the cancellation of the Crooks’ much-anticipated dog sledding excursion.
“We just ended up hitting the martini bar,” Crook said.
Despite the scare, Crook said the experience hasn’t soured her on cruising.
“No, it doesn’t change our mind,” she said. “How many times do you hear something like this happening? It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event.”
Crook and her husband are continuing their cruise, now under calmer skies, grateful for their safety and another remarkable story to add to forty years of adventures together.
First Coast News reached out to Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean for comment. We have not heard back at this time.
