MIAMI — A Royal Caribbean cruise ship ran into high winds and rough seas in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday, forcing frightened passengers into their cabins overnight as their belongings flew about, waves rose as high as 30 feet and winds howled outside.
The cruise line says that although no one was injured and the ship suffered only minor damage, it is turning around and sailing back to its home port in New Jersey.
“I was shaking all over,” Shara Strand of New York City wrote to The Associated Press via Facebook on Monday. “Panic attack, things like that. … I’ve been on over 20 cruises, I’ve been through a hurricane, it was never like this. Never.”
Some meteorologists compared the massive storm to Hurricane Isabel, which was fitting because on Sunday afternoon it was boasting 100 mph winds — the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane.
The cruise ship — with more than 4,500 guests and 1,600 crew members — sailed Saturday from Cape Liberty, N.J. It was scheduled to arrive for a stop at Port Canaveral, Fla., at noon Monday, then move on to other stops in the Caribbean.
