00:00All the power shut off, at life once.
00:03Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most dreadful incidents to have happened on cruise ships.
00:08We won't be examining moments when boats sunk or capsized with people on board.
00:12The liner crashing into the rocks after dark, seawater rushing in.
00:18Number 10. Boat Brawl
00:19After a nice vacation, most people will leave in a state of relaxed bliss for a bit.
00:24But one group of boat tourists had nothing but aggression immediately.
00:28In 2025, after spending seven days in the Caribbean aboard Carnival Cruise Line's boat, Carnival Jubilee, the ship arrived at port in Galveston, Texas.
00:36However, some tourists were still holding grudges from a basketball game during the journey.
00:40It reportedly started on the basketball court on the last sea day of the cruise.
00:45Soon after arriving at the debarkation customs area, a massive brawl erupted, a portion of which was filmed and put online.
00:51Multiple security guards can be seen running toward the fight, but they struggle to immediately contain the melee.
00:56In the end, one passenger, Ethan Merrick Clark, was arrested for attacking an older man who tried to stop the fight.
01:02And 24 people were banned from further trips with Carnival.
01:05A Carnival spokesperson told media, quote,
01:08We will not tolerate such behavior. These individuals can seek other cruise lines, but they are not welcome on our ships.
01:15Number 9. Cozy Mill Carnival Cruise Collision
01:17Sometimes when on a vessel, other boats can get pretty close.
01:20Usually there's still loads of distance and everything's fine.
01:23However, in 2019, the Carnival Glory and Carnival Legend cruise ships got way, way too close, while near the port in Cozumel, Mexico.
01:31Tonight, massive ships on a collision course in Mexico.
01:34When the Glory attempted to dock as the Legend had already done so, its stern smashed into the Legend's bow.
01:40He's gonna hit us next!
01:41The Legend sliced into the Glory, completely destroying large portions of multiple decks.
01:45Despite the very visual collision, with the Glory's Platinum Restaurant being thankfully empty at the time, only six people required treatment for minor injuries.
01:53It's believed heavy winds played a major factor in this dramatic collision.
01:57It was very scary, traumatic, and just glad that it wasn't worse.
02:01Number 8. Entertainment to the Rescue
02:02There's a long-held tradition that a ship's captain should be the last to leave when being rescued.
02:07Apparently, this isn't something Yannis Avranas followed.
02:10I still thought that the captain was on the bridge, doing whatever he needs to do.
02:14In 1991, he was in charge of the MTS Oceanus, as it went to Durban, South Africa.
02:20A big storm contributed to an explosion, causing the boat to lose power and begin flooding.
02:24With no alarm sounded and the ship appearing to sink, onboard entertainer Moss Hills went to the bridge, only to find it empty.
02:30Hill used the radio to call for help and then took charge as other entertainment staff helped to organize the passengers and keep them calm.
02:37We didn't know how many people to put into each lifeboat. We hadn't been trained for anything like that. We were entertainers.
02:43When the rescue helicopter arrived, Avranas reportedly insisted on being rescued first.
02:47After everyone was saved, the Oceanus then sank.
02:50Every single person was saved. There wasn't a single life lost.
02:54Number 7. Pacific Sun's Injury Storm
02:56The seas can be a violent entity. As such, storms out there can wreak havoc on boats.
03:06In 2008, P&O Cruises Australia's Pacific Sun ship was north of Auckland, New Zealand, during an eight-day trip.
03:13However, while in the ocean, a massive storm struck, causing 23-foot waves and 50-knot winds to crash into the vessel, forcing it to roll up to 31 degrees.
03:22Unsurprisingly, this caused a lot of danger for the passengers and crew.
03:25In 2010, CCTV footage from inside the Pacific Sun was released.
03:30One video from a restaurant showed crew, passengers, and equipment being thrown violently from side to side.
03:36This carnage resulted in over 42 people getting injured.
03:39Number 6. Seaborne Spirits Pirate Heroics
03:42In 2005, the Seaborne Spirit was traveling in Africa for a 16-day trip.
03:47While on its way to Mombasa, Kenya, two small boats of Somali pirates approached the ship.
03:51I'm relaying your transmission now, but chances are it's just fishermen.
03:55They're not here to fish.
03:57The group fired weapons, including an RPG, one of which stuck into the spirit but thankfully didn't explode.
04:02With the danger to everyone on board, the crew sprang into action.
04:06Stop it, Danny!
04:07Oh!
04:08Without using any firearms, the ship's master at arms, Sombaha Dewar Gurung, used a long-range acoustic device, or LRAD.
04:19However, he was struck non-fatally by a bullet.
04:22As the captain tried to ram the pirates with the spirit, Michael Groves dragged Gurung to safety.
04:27He then turned on the sonic weapon deterring the pirates.
04:30You know, we take the prosecution of these pirates very seriously.
04:34In 2007, Gurung and Groves were awarded medals by Queen Elizabeth II.
04:39Number 5, Runaway Ship
04:40The footage of this 2019 incident looks more like a disaster film than real life.
04:44Nine stories high, 65,000 tons, capable of carrying 2,500 passengers.
04:51In 2019, the MSC Opera experienced engine troubles in Venice, Italy.
04:55Unable to stop the boat from driving forward, as backup plans failed, the captain blared the sirens, causing tourists and locals to run for safety.
05:03Delta Echo! Delta Echo!
05:05The announcement, Delta Echo, is code for the crew.
05:08Damage to the ship and collision imminent.
05:11Hold on!
05:12The massive ship smashed into the wharf and the already docked Uniworld river cruise ship, the River Countess.
05:18The much smaller ship suffered massive damage and five people were injured.
05:21I heard this deafening noise coming closer, the sound of the horn.
05:24We were lucky because it could have been much worse.
05:27This incident sparked locals and politicians to call for more restrictions on cruise ships in Venice's waters.
05:33The opera's captain and bridge staff were deemed at fault for the incident and sentenced to jail, which was later commuted to fines.
05:39Number 4, Explorer of the Disease
05:41At one point, the Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas was the biggest cruise ship in the world.
05:46The company would rather everyone focus on that than on what happened in 2014.
05:50When I was in my room, I didn't know about the other people until my husband went out and told the crew attendant.
05:56Shortly after leaving Cape Liberty, New Jersey, disease began to run rampant through the vessel.
06:01By the time the ship docked at St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, 281 passengers and 22 crew members
06:06had reported symptoms of the highly infectious neurovirus.
06:10Neurovirus can spread very readily from person to person.
06:13So when you have people confined, the spread can be quick and explosive.
06:17The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, quickly arrived to assess the situation.
06:23In the end, nearly 700 people aboard had neurovirus.
06:26The CDC confirmed that this was one of the worst outbreaks they had seen in 20 years.
06:30Everybody was, you know, using buckets to do what they had to do.
06:35Number 3, The Poop Cruise
06:36In 2013, while in the Gulf of Mexico, the Carnival Triumph experienced a fire in the engine room.
06:41Were you scared?
06:42I was pretty freaked out.
06:43While that was quickly dealt with, the damage caused the ship to lose power.
06:46On top of food and water requiring rationing, the sewage system was backed up.
06:51People were using the restroom in little red plastic bags and throwing them out into the hallway.
06:55This forced human waste to leak all over the ship, hence the colorful nickname of the cruise,
07:00as the passengers were stuck aboard.
07:02It took four days for the Triumph to be taken by tugboats to a port in Mobile, Alabama.
07:07However, two months later, the ship escaped its moorings during a storm,
07:10causing significant damage to another boat.
07:12Due to the high winds, the Carnival Triumph broke its moorings,
07:17drifted over across the Mobile ship channel.
07:19It had a small collision with the Army Corps visionary boats and a deck barge.
07:24To make sure a fire like that doesn't happen again,
07:27Carnival announced a $300 million plan to upgrade its fleet.
07:31Number 2, Murder at Sea
07:32In May 2025, the MSC Virtuosa left Southampton, England for a two-day cruise to Bruges, Belgium.
07:3960-year-old retired stunt performer James Messam was on board reportedly as part of a bachelor party,
07:45as several were being held.
07:47Yet, soon after embarking, brawls allegedly happened as the alcohol flowed freely.
07:51However, a couple of hours after the Virtuosa had departed and while the vessel was still in British waters,
08:01horror struck.
08:02A violent altercation took place, resulting in Messam being severely injured.
08:06While the crew and a trained medic guest tried to help him, Messam sadly died.
08:10Two men were soon arrested for murder and were released on bail as the investigation continued.
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08:30Number 1, The Disappearance of Rebecca Coriam
08:33In 2011, Coriam was working aboard the Disney Wonder as a youth worker.
08:37She sent her parents a message that she would call them the next day.
08:40Sadly, she didn't and didn't arrive for her next shift.
08:42Well, we got the phone call about quarter to 11 here, the Tuesday evening here,
08:46just before we'd gone to bed from Disney to say that Rebecca is missing at sea.
08:53The investigation found CCTV footage in the early hours of Coriam looking distraught
08:57while talking to someone on one of the boat's internal phones.
09:00After another crew member checked on her, Coriam left and wasn't seen again.
09:04Disney believed she went overboard accidentally when a rogue wave hit the ship.
09:07You had a potential crime scene, but you certainly had evidence that needed to be preserved.
09:14However, the controversial police investigation and doubts about Disney's explanation contributed
09:18to several theories, including that Coriam was murdered as part of a love triangle or for
09:23other motives. Coriam's family sued Disney, which was settled in 2016.
09:27I don't think it gets any easier. I think the longer it goes on, the harder it seems to get.
09:32What was your worst experience on board a cruise ship? Let us know below.
09:35We pride ourselves in providing our guests with a great vacation experience,
09:39and clearly we failed in this particular case.
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