Has a Waterspout Ever Hit a Cruise Ship?

By Robert Palmer

A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex of swirling water and wind. It is usually formed from a thunderstorm cloud, and it can travel over the surface of the ocean or other bodies of water. Waterspouts can reach speeds of up to 80 mph and have been known to cause significant damage to property, including ships.

So, has a waterspout ever hit a cruise ship? The answer is yes, although this type of incident is very rare.

In fact, it’s estimated that only about one percent of all waterspouts actually make contact with a cruise ship or other vessel at sea. However, when they do make contact, the results can be devastating.

In 2006, a waterspout struck the MSC Lirica near Sicily while carrying 1,500 passengers. The funnel-shaped tornado caused severe damage to the ship’s hull and superstructure, including flooding in some parts of the vessel. Fortunately, no lives were lost as a result of the incident and all passengers were safely evacuated from the ship after it had been stabilized.

In 2013, another waterspout struck Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Splendor off the coast of Mexico. The tornado caused substantial damage to the ship’s hull and superstructure as well as flooding in some areas. Once again, no lives were lost but several passengers suffered minor injuries due to falling debris.

Conclusion: Although it is rare for a waterspout to make contact with a cruise ship or other vessel at sea, such incidents do occur from time to time with potentially devastating consequences. Fortunately, in both cases mentioned above there were no fatalities reported as a result of these storms hitting the vessels.