Carnival ship fails federal sanitation inspection
Fourth time in two months inspectors find health issues
Carnival Cruise Line’s ships seem to be having a bit of a sanitation problem in recent months.
The Carnival Liberty is now the fourth ship belonging to the Doral-based cruise line to fail its sanitation inspection in the span of two months. While large ships from major cruise lines do fail inspections from time to time, a string of failures so close together is a rarity.
In Liberty’s Jan. 4 inspection, inspectors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vessel Sanitation Program found at least three dead flying insects inside a dishwasher, a beverage carton in a refrigerator with a long hair on it, and corroded, dirty or broken machinery.
In the Port Canaveral-based ship’s Silver Olympian Dining Room, “hundreds” of previously cleaned items were stored in an area for dirty dishes. In a Serenity whirlpool spa, the analyzer that measures bromine and pH levels was malfunctioning and had to be recalibrated.
A crew member who had symptoms of acute gastroenteritis continued working before reporting the symptoms.
The violations were among more than a dozen found by CDC inspectors. As part of the Vessel Sanitation Program, inspectors randomly inspect ships multiple times a year in an effort to control the spread of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise vessels. Ships must score 86 points or higher out of 100 to pass. Liberty scored an 80. Carnival Cruise Line spokeswoman Jennifer De La Cruz said in a statement that the recent inspection scores “are not indicative of the utmost importance we place on operational excellence aboard our vessels.”
“We have taken immediate corrective action, not only for the items reported, but also in providing widespread and intensive retraining and continuing education to all levels of our shipboard team members across the fleet,” De La Cruz said.
Carnival has historically earned passing grades for most of its vessels during inspections. The recent failures constitute the first time each of the four ships has failed an inspection.
Other than three other Carnival ships, the only ships to fail their most recent inspections are luxury French line Ponant’s Le Boreal, which earned an 84; Peace Boat’s Ocean Dream with an 82; Victory Cruise Line’s Victory I, which earned a 78, and Caribbean ferry, scored a 61.
Maritime lawyer James Walker estimates that failed inspections on cruise ships happen about two to three times a year, meaning Carnival’s recent string is far outpacing the typical circumstances.
Other than three other Carnival ships, the only ships to fail their most recent inspections are luxury French line Ponant’s Le Boreal, which earned an 84; Peace Boat’s Ocean Dream with an 82; Victory Cruise Line’s Victory I, which earned a 78, and a Caribbean ferry, Kydon, which scored a 61.
Still, it’s unclear what, if any, correlation there is between failures and the gastro illness norovirus that sometimes breaks out on cruise ships and other closed environments, such as schools.
“I don’t see any correlation between failed inspections and any trend toward being more or less susceptible to norovirus,” Walker said. a little-known Kydon, which