TAMPA, Fla. — Two upcoming cruises on the Carnival Freedom have been canceled after part of the ship caught fire Saturday.
Flames on the ship's exhaust funnel were reported around 3:15 p.m. amid bad weather near the Bahamas. The cruise line says it is investigating multiple eyewitness reports of a lightning strike, but the cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed.
It was originally believed that the fire would not impact a scheduled March 25 departure from Port Canaveral, but Carnival has since announced that voyage, as well as a March 29 voyage, have both been canceled.
"Regrettably, the damage is more than we first thought and will require an immediate repair to stabilize the funnel," the cruise line said in a statement. "The funnel has been stabilized for the ship’s return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests, and then it will go to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to begin the required repairs."
All guests will receive a full refund and a "100% future cruise credit" — a voucher that can be applied to future cruise purchases.
The ship's fire response team worked to contain the flames on Saturday while the ship's captain turned the vessel toward the heavy rain to help efforts.
A portion of the funnel fell onto one of the decks, but none of the guests were injured. Two of the firefighters were treated for minor smoke inhalation.
The fire was put out by 5:20 p.m., and passengers were asked to stay away from balconies and decks.
This is the second time a fire has impacted the Carnival Freedom. The ship's funnel caught fire in May 2022 while docked in Grand Turk.