The port of Arrecife and the rest of the Canary stops will not finally receive the cruise ship 'Mein Schiff 3'. A collision during its departure maneuver in the port of Bremen forced TUI Cruises to completely suspend a 20-night voyage that had Lanzarote among its key destinations, frustrating the vacations of 2,428 cruise passengers.
The incident took place last Sunday when wind gusts of up to 95 km/h pushed the ship—on which 3,350 people were traveling between passengers and crew—against two docked container ships. Although there were no injuries or water ingress, the impact destroyed lifeboats, davits, and part of the hull, which requires the ship to go to a shipyard immediately.
The canceled itinerary included stops in Porto, Lisbon, and Funchal before visiting La Gomera, Tenerife, Lanzarote, and Gran Canaria. The cancellation means the unforeseen loss of this tourist flow for local businesses and excursions. Meanwhile, the German Maritime Police are holding the ships and investigating the captain's maneuver under meteorological alert conditions.
The German authorities' investigations are now focused on determining whether the officer in command was guilty of a lack of diligence in initiating the unberthing with a warning of an active storm. While awaiting the conclusion of this administrative procedure, technicians are evaluating the exact extent of the damage in dry dock, while the two affected cargo ships also remain immobilized by court order.
As stated by the president of the TUI group, Sebastian Ebel, in statements to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, "A case like this also shows the real stability of a ship," Ebel stated. "Cruises are among the safest means of transport, just like airplanes. I don't think our customers' perception will be affected after this incident," he explained.
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