More than 100 passengers booked for a voyage from Portland to Saint John, New Brunswick, won’t be making the trip.
American Queen Voyages announced Thursday that its cruise ship, Ocean Navigator, won’t be departing due to damage caused by an explosion and fire in its engine room Wednesday morning that forced them to evacuate more than 200 guests and crew members. One crew member suffered burns and was taken to Maine Medical Center.
The explosion took place around 7:25 a.m. while Ocean Navigator was docked at Portland’s Ocean Gateway Pier. The cruise ship was scheduled to leave port Thursday on a 10-day trip to Canada.
“American Queen Voyages has made the difficult decision to cancel our Oct. 19 sailing from Portland to Saint John due to a combination of the recent mechanical issues caused by the generator fire from the previous sailing as well as the adverse weather conditions forecasted for the upcoming weekend,” the cruise line said in a statement. “We deeply regret any inconvenience this may cause our passengers, and we want to emphasize that this decision was not made lightly.”
“The safety and security of our guests and dedicated crew is our top priority, and after careful consideration and evaluation of various factors by our captain, it has been determined that it is unsafe for us to embark on this journey.”
A spokesperson for American Queen Voyages said passengers affected by the cancellation have been offered a compensation package.
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