Passengers displaced on land in Hawaii due to the magnitude 8.8 earthquake and subsequent tsunami risk are now back on their cruise ship.
Hundreds were left stranded in Hilo, Hawaii overnight as their ship, Norwegian’s Pride of America was forced to depart port two hours early to seek safer, deep water due to the risk of tsunami waves.
“Before departure, all guests were notified via SMS and advised to seek higher ground and follow instructions from local authorities if they were unable to return to the ship,” the cruise line said in a statement.
This was “to prioritize the safety of our guests and crew” NCL said.
Passengers Spend the Night in a School And Stadium
Guests on NCL shore excursions were taken to Waiakea High School, which was a designated evacuation site, as it is sited more than 100 feet above sea level.
The ship finally departed after a mandatory inspection of Hilo harbor and arrived on schedule in Nawiliwili, Kauai on Thursday. This is the final stop before returning to Honolulu at the weekend.
Eric Anderson and his father were two guests left stranded on land, while his wife and children had remained onboard the ship during their shore excursion. He said he received an initial SMS message about the ship departing early but then no further communications.
“I immediately got my dad and went to the tour bus driver and said, ‘Hey, we should probably get back to the boat,” he told local media.
“I reached out to my wife, who was on the boat with our three daughters to ask her to find out what was going on because we didn’t get any other updates via text.”
Anderson said the bus he was on arrived at the port just minutes after the ship departed. He praised local residents for helping them to shelter.
“A bunch of tour guides just pulled up and said, ‘Hey, get in, we’re going to shelter.’ They were volunteers, which is just amazing. People were willing to help out complete strangers,” Anderson said. “We spent the night at the stadium. People slept everywhere.”
