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Posted on Tue, Jan. 18, 2005

Radisson cancels cruise after fire

By PATRICK DANNER

pdanner@herald.com


None of the 481 passengers or crew members on board the Radisson Seven Seas Navigator was injured after a Monday morning electrical fire in the ship's generator room.

The Navigator, however, will have to undergo repairs. That forced Fort Lauderdale-based Radisson Seven Seas Cruises to cancel a week-long Caribbean cruise supposed to have departed tonight from Port Everglades.

Mark Conroy, president of Fort Lauderdale-based Radisson Seven Seas Cruises, said the fire lasted less than five minutes but shut down power to the ship and its engines. The ship operated on emergency power for three hours before main power was restored, he said.

The fire occured about eight miles south of Great Inagua in the southern Bahamas, while the Navigator was heading for Port Everglades. Cause of the fire wasn't immediately known, Conroy said. The Navigator was slated to arrive in Port Everglades Tuesday night and passengers were scheduled to depart Wednesday morning.

Radisson has offered passengers a $1,000 discount for a future cruise. The 470 passengers who were supposed to depart Tuesday will receive full refunds and a $1,000 discount on a future cruise, Conroy said.

After repairs are completed, the Navigator is scheduled to resume sailing on a week-long cruise leaving Jan. 25 from Port Everglades. Upon its Feb. 1 return, the Navigator will head to Jacksonville where it will be among a handful of cruise ships providing additional rooms for the city during Super Bowl festivities.