The 'Poop Cruise', explained
More than a decade after it set sail, one of the most infamous pre-Covid cruises is back in the news thanks to a Netflix documentary.
Trainwreck: Poop Cruise splashed onto the streaming service this week, featuring passenger footage that takes viewers onto the ill-fated 2013 voyage of the Carnival Triumph. If the entire story has slipped your mind, or you weren't aware of it to begin with, have no fear. We're here to catch you up on the admittedly unsavory affair.
No nose plugs required.
So, what's up with the 2013 Carnival Triumph 'Poop Cruise'?
In February 2013, the Carnival Triumph departed Galveston, Texas with 4,229 passengers and crew members headed on a four-day trip to Cozumel, Mexico and back. On Day 3 of the voyage, as the ship made it's way across the Gulf of Mexico and back to Texas, a fire in the engine room saw the vessel lose power without sufficient back-up. The fire didn't injure anyone, but the consequences were felt immediately.
Per AL.com:
Hundreds of miles away in the Gulf of Mexico, what began as a dream voyage to a Mexican paradise had turned into a nightmare. The Carnival Triumph, stranded after an engine fire on February 10, was adrift without power, air conditioning, or functioning toilets. Passengers used blankets to shield themselves from the sun while seeking refuge on the open deck. Food ran scarce as passengers told stories about eating tomato-and-onion sandwiches.
OK, but why was it dubbed the 'Poop Cruise' instead of the 'Fire Cruise'?
There's no delicate way to put this, so we'll just state it plainly.
The malfunctioning toilet and plumbing situation caused sewage to flood areas of the ship and left everyone aboard with only one option to go No. 2: They had to defecate into red biohazard bags.
How long did the 'Poop Cruise' last?
Before you think, "no way am I using a bag, I'll just hold it," consider the ship was dead in the water for four days — three days longer than the trip was scheduled for. The ship initially planned to get towed to port in Mexico, but the current pushed it much further north.
Eventually, making port in Mobile, Alabama became the best option — despite the fact it's terminal hadn't been used by a cruise ship in two years. Multiple tug boats were required to tow the boat back to shore and passengers were finally able to get off.
What happened to the passengers after the cruise?
Most passengers were loaded onto coach busses for transport to New Orleans or Galveston, where Carnival had arranged further accommodations. Then the company got to work on making things right for their guests.
Here's what Carnival formally announced at the time:
All guests on the Feb. 7 Carnival Triumph voyage will receive a full refund of the cruise and transportation expenses, a future cruise credit equal to the amount paid for the voyage, reimbursement of all shipboard purchases made during the voyage, with the exception of casino, gift shop and artwork purchases, and further compensation of $500 per person.
Carnival has also canceled 14 voyages of the Carnival Triumph through April 13, 2013. Guests on the affected sailings will receive a full refund of their cruise fare, as well as non-refundable transportation costs, pre-paid shore excursions, gratuities, and government fees and taxes. Guests will also receive a 25 percent discount on a future three- to five-day Carnival cruise or a 15 percent discount on a six- to seven-day cruise. Travel agent commissions will be protected.
Sadly, this is not where our story ends.
What happened to the Carnival Triumph after the 'Poop Cruise'?
The vessel remained in Mobile, but was transferred from the cruise terminal to a local shipyard for assessment and repairs. This proved incredibly difficult and, ultimateIy tragic.
More, from AL.com:
On April 3, with wind gusts reaching 66 mph, the ship broke its moorings at BAE Systems, where it had been docked for initial repairs.
The nearly 900-foot cruise ship then floated uncontrolled across the river toward Mobile where it slammed into a pier and sent two shipyard workers plunging into the river. One of those workers, John R. 'Buster' Johnson, died from the incident.
The Triumph then floated across the river and into the side of a marine vessel owned by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which was being repaired at Signal Ship Repair. The incident left visible damage to the Triumph's right stern.
The trouble didn't end there, because not long after the April 3 incident, a nearby fuel barge explosion forced workers to evacuate the ship. Finally, 82 days after docking in Alabama, the ship sailed to the Bahamas for final repairs so it could be put back into service.
Wait, the Poop Cruise boat is still in service!?
Oh, you bet it is. The ship has since undergone $200 million in renovations and was renamed the Carnival Sunrise in 2019. It now sails out of Miami.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
19 hours ago
- USA Today
Peter Malnati gave an epic speech to PGA Tour membership. He walks us through his message
DETROIT – Being a player director on the PGA Tour Policy Board has become hard work. On Wednesday, Zach Johnson, who served on the Tour board from 2009-11, applauded the six players who are currently serving during arguably the most turbulent time in the Tour's history. 'When I served on the board, I had to deal with drug testing – should we or should we not? – and FedEx Cup point realignment. That was the heaviest thing I had to deal with and there never was more than three meetings a year,' Johnson said. 'Since COVID, that hasn't been the case.' Peter Malnati, a 38-year-old two-time winner whose two-year board tenure ends later this year, knew what he was getting himself into but ran for the role anyway. He likely would lead the statistical category Strokes Gained: Positive Thinking if Strokes Gained creator Mark Broadie could devise a way to rank it. Adam Schenk may have summed up Malnati's optimistic outlook best: 'He's so nice and he actually means it.' (In this writer's opinion, he's golf's Ted Lasso.) Malnati's speech was a highlight of player meeting On Tuesday, during the Tour's mandatory player meeting, he gave 'an impassioned speech' – that's how fellow pro Mark Hubbard described it – to those players in the 156-man field at the Rocket Classic. [Not all 156 attended. Some were excused because they already had attended a similar meeting the week before at the Travelers Championship or because the meeting time conflicted with a sponsor commitment or other excused absences.] 'Peter talks from his heart,' said fellow Tour policy board member Camilo Villegas. 'He's had a chance to sit on the board and understand why the decisions that have been made in the last few years have been the right decisions at the moment they were made and how the goal posts keep getting moved in an evolving business and constantly analyzing what's for the best because it's a fast-moving and evolving business.' 'I'm pretty honored that anyone referred to it as an impassioned speech, but it was something that I feel really strongly about,' Malnati said in a voice message to Golfweek. Malnati went on to recount the message he delivered to players on Tuesday, during which he admitted he may have signed off on losing his job someday with the Tour implementing a new policy reducing the number of players who retain fully-exempt status from 125 to 100 beginning this year. [Malnati, who entered the week at No. 194 in the FedEx Cup is exempt for next season as the winner of the 2024 Valspar Championship.] What you're about to read is shades of Jim Colbert, a mid-tier Tour member who would go on to win eight Tour titles, who once famously said at a Tour players meeting in 1983, 'It's real simple, boys. Just play better.' When players make arguments that don't directly benefit their own cause, the professional golf ecosystem should listen its hardest … because they're rare. Malnati does that with these remarks. 'I just wanted to say to the membership that I ran for a seat on the board because I cared – really, really, strongly about not losing opportunities and not seeing the Tour get smaller and in my time on the board, both of those things have happened. And because I was on the inside and I saw the thought process, I supported them – doesn't mean they're easy for me. It doesn't mean they don't hurt because they do," Malnati began. 'I feel like the Tour at its core was built around the idea of maximizing playing opportunities and may the best man win. So it hurts to see the best option be to reduce playing opportunities and to see the Tour shrink." Malnati said shrinking Tour makes sense, even if it hurts Malnati continued to share with the membership that there's tangible evidence of late that validates the thought process. [Over the last six months, the Tour has closed nearly $1 billion in new or renewed contracts. Additionally, CBS reported a 13 percent year-over-year ratings increase and a 19 percent year-over-year increase at signature events. Many other metrics are ticking in the right direction, such as its digital platforms.] 'Seeing the success in renewing full-field title sponsorships for long-term deals in the 9-plus-million-dollar per range that's impressive – that's really impressive. It speaks to the fact that these full-field events feel that they're getting good value. And you know it's marked and measurable to see that their fields are stronger than they were when the invitational events that had 120-player fields and then obviously the first year of signature events, they still played at their regular field sizes. That was crushing the full field events and sponsors were really concerned and now to see the momentum where sponsors are back supporting the full-field events at really nice purse levels – that's a huge win for the entire membership.' Malnati wanted them to hear that directly from him and also address the elephant in the room, what he termed 'the thing that we all hate the most, which is the smaller fields and the signature events and the upcoming reduction of fully-exempt cards from 125 to 100 for next season. 'That is simply a re-prioritizing of PGA Tour members that takes guys who go out and play a season on the Korn Ferry Tour and finish in the top 20 and says to them you deserve starts in all the full-field events and I think that's absolutely true now. Is it a great accomplishment to finish in the top 125 on the PGA Tour? It is, it's really good. Is it an even greater accomplishment to finish in the top 100? Yes, I've achieved that twice in my 10 seasons on Tour. I shared that with the membership yet I still think this was the right thing to do because the point of everything we're doing is to identify players who can become superstars and drive the brand forward and so we've got to give those guys that graduate from the Korn Ferry Tour a fair shot to play and so I think going from 125 cards to 100 and then putting the guys that finish 101 to 125 in the next-best conditional category after the Korn Ferry Tour graduates was absolutely the right thing to do even though in a way I was cutting my own head off.' New PGA Tour system to closer mimic Formula 1 How many players would support a decision that might be 'cutting their own head off?' Malnati realizes that barely any players outside the top 100 on Tour generate standalone attention. Sure, there are exceptions like Joel Dahmen (and Tiger Woods wouldn't be Tiger Woods without fields of 156 to beat up on). But fewer players in the arena make it easier for the Tour to market players, easier for fans to know more contenders on a leaderboard, and it's more assuring to sponsors that top-tier players contend or win in their tournaments. Look no further than F1, which is its most popular now, with just 20 drivers who all drive in every race. Same with NASCAR. Athletes in team sports are expected to play in every one of their teams' games. 'Then lastly shared the fact that the system while it creates a very narrow funnel, I said the whole point of what we're doing – the Tour doesn't want to use this language quite this bluntly – we're identifying the top players and get them competing against each other more regularly,' Malnati said. 'So, yes, the signature event model caters to top players, it does, but the thing that I want everyone in that room and everyone on Tour and every fan and every partner to realize is that even though smaller fields are inherently a little bit less competitive because there's fewer guys, the system (we're implementing) right now there's no rules that rule out anyone. J.J. Spaun was not exempt into a single signature event at the start of this year … and he's currently ranked eighth in the world. He played his way there. Maverick McNealy played his way into the top 10 in the world – I think he's 14 right now but he was top 10 in the world. Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak, in terms of everything they're able to accomplish now on Tour, they have played their way into that group of top players. They're going to qualify for the BMW Championship this year, be fully exempt for signature events next year and they've played their way into it. 'This system is aspirational,' Malnati continued. 'The funnel is small, but the opportunity is there and it's still objective. It's still golf. If you shoot low enough scores, you will be there, so, I closed by saying my challenge to Brian Rolapp is to continue to grow the opportunity on the PGA Tour. I want to see him grow it for top players, I want to see him grow it for every single member and my challenge to all the members in the room was to go be as competitive as you can be and believe. But the guys who shoot the best scores are our top players and the more that we do that, the more that we go out and put on a show and strive to become top players, the better our product is, the more fans are going to engage with it and the more opportunity will be for everyone. So that was my spiel …. I'm glad someone thought to call it impassioned. I felt very passionate about it. I still feel very passionate about it but it's definitely been hard.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
CCL vs. RCL: Which Cruise Line Stock is the Smarter Buy Right Now?
As consumer appetite for experiential travel continues to rebound, cruise operators like Carnival Corporation & plc CCL and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. RCL are vying for investor attention with strong brand portfolios and improving fundamentals. Both companies are capitalizing on elevated demand and pricing power, setting them up for differences in strategy, innovation, and operational discipline raise the question: which cruise stock stands out more favorably in the current climate?Let's see how these two cruise giants stack up. Carnival is leveraging its global scale and multi-brand strategy to deliver robust yield growth and operational momentum. Carnival recently exceeded its 2026 targets — 50% growth in EBITDA per berth and a 12% return on invested capital — 18 months ahead of schedule. It achieved its highest EBITDA margin in nearly two decades, supported by strong close-in ticket demand, onboard spending, and cost fiscal 2025, Carnival will debut Celebration Key, a flagship private Caribbean destination featuring the world's largest swim-up bar, expansive lagoons, and curated beach experiences. Additional upgrades to Half Moon Cay and Mahogany Bay (to be rebranded Isla Tropicale) further strengthen its 'Paradise Collection' strategy to attract and retain guests. Additionally, Carnival is revamping its fleet through the AIDA Evolution upgrade and moderate newbuild pipeline. It is also launching a new loyalty program — Carnival Rewards — in mid-2026, which ties benefits to overall spend and credit card use. This initiative, modeled after successful airline programs, is expected to boost guest engagement in the upcoming the financial side, Carnival refinanced $7 billion of debt so far in fiscal 2025 and improved its net debt-to-EBITDA ratio sequentially from 4.1x to 3.7x in the fiscal second quarter 2025. With limited new ship deliveries through 2029 and growing free cash flow, Carnival is focused on regaining investment-grade status while delivering long-term shareholder value. Royal Caribbean is executing on its 'Perfecta Performance' strategy by combining premium guest experiences, moderate capacity expansion, and disciplined cost management to drive strong financial growth. In the first quarter of 2025, the company reported yield growth of 5.6% and a 35% EBITDA margin — up 360 basis points year over year — fueled by exceptional close-in demand, pricing power, and elevated onboard spending. The company continues to expand its exclusive destination portfolio with the upcoming Royal Beach Club in Nassau, designed to complement its popular Perfect Day at CocoCay. The club will feature curated beach experiences, elevated dining, and expanded guest capacity, intended to deepen guest engagement and boost ancillary Caribbean's growing digital footprint is another key differentiator. Its mobile app, now widely adopted across the fleet, is driving higher levels of direct booking and pre-cruise purchases. Loyalty program integration and frictionless trip planning are central to the company's efforts to improve revenue capture and increase repeat the company may face near-term pressure related to ship deployment timing and elevated expenses tied to destination rollouts and dry dock activity. Cost growth is expected to vary across quarters, primarily influenced by the scheduling of dry docks, ship deliveries, and the ramp-up of expenses tied to the Costa Maya port acquisition and other destination investments. The second and third quarters are expected to have higher costs, with the third quarter particularly affected, facing a 280-basis-point impact from these timing-related factors. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Carnival's fiscal 2025 sales and earnings per share (EPS) suggests year-over-year increases of 5.4% and 38%, respectively. In the past 60 days, earnings estimates for fiscal 2025 have risen 3.8%. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Royal Caribbean's 2025 sales and EPS suggests year-over-year increases of 9.4% and 30.7%, respectively. In the past 60 days, earnings estimates for 2025 have increased 6%. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Carnival stock has rallied 31.7% in the past three months, significantly outpacing its industry and the S&P 500's rise of 15.8% and 10.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean shares have risen 42.6% in the same time. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Carnival is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 12.92X, below the industry average of 18.59X over the last year. RCL's forward 12-month P/E multiple sits at 17.92X over the same time frame. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Based on short-term price targets offered by 23 analysts, Carnival's average price target represents an increase of 10.7% from the last closing price of $26.17. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Based on short-term price targets offered by 24 analysts, RCL's average price target represents a decline of 7.1% from the last closing price of $295.89. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Given their contrasting strategies, Carnival presents a more attractive near-term buying opportunity than Royal Caribbean. While RCL continues to deliver premium experiences and superior margins, it faces near-term cost pressures related to destination rollouts and dry dock activity. Carnival, on the other hand, is delivering operational efficiency and financial gains through disciplined execution, fleet upgrades, and destination-led brand differentiation. Its early achievement of long-term margin and sustainability targets, coupled with attractive valuation and rising earnings estimates, highlights a clear edge. With a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and momentum on its side, Carnival offers a compelling entry point for investors seeking near-term gains and long-term value. Meanwhile, RCL, carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), may warrant a wait-and-see approach. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Carnival Corporation (CCL) : Free Stock Analysis Report Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Aussies ditch United States for new favourite holiday destination: 'Huge reversal'
I love America. Their cities are the world's brightest. Their mountains among the most beautiful. The deserts — spectacular. Live music in that country is incredible. The place is a giant smorgasbord of great destinations, coast to coast, Chicago to Austin. And let's not overlook Hawaii. But would I go there now? Noooo! No way! And most Aussies are like me. We are avoiding the Land of the Free. Hard pass. In fact, if you make a list of major destinations and check how much travel has changed since 2015, America is way down the bottom of our no-go list. As the next chart shows, the United States is down near Papua new Guinea and Cambodia. While at the top is Japan. Not only has America seen less growth in tourism from Australia since 2015, it has actually gone backwards. Fewer planes coming from Australia, with more empty seats. It's a huge reversal for a destination that was not only once popular, but literally our favourite place to go. RELATED Price hike warning for Aussies travelling to Europe as US-Iran tensions escalate Centrelink payment alert for 58,000 Aussies in caravans Inheritance warning ahead of $5.4 trillion transfer as 'avoidable' money 'traps' exposed As the next chart shows, America racked up 10 months where it was our most popular destination between 2013 and 2017. (It had more months in the number one spot during 2020-2021 but many of the world's borders were closed then so it doesn't count). It was, during this period, always in our top three, alongside New Zealand and Indonesia. But recently, nope. Since the world's borders re-opened, America has struggled to regain its desirability. It fell to third place, then fourth place, fifth and even as low as eighth in January this year. Why? Well there's the obvious. But we should not overlook the basic economics of it. America used to be cheap. That's a big reason. As the next chart shows, there were some glorious years where an Australian Dollar bought more than a US dollar. Those were the years where we planned and booked our trips to America, and when America first rose to the top of our list of favourites. It held on as a favourite for a few more years even as our dollar began its slide. But when we came out of our Covid reverie we had to admit America was expensive now. With our dollar under 65 cents (at time of writing) you can't just pretend the two currencies are equal and round up. You have to admit that while a US Big Mac looks cheap at US$5 that's actually A$7.50, which is basically the same as home. And over there they add tax and tip to everything. America's tipping culture has been subject to insane inflation. You are sneered at if you don't add 20 per cent now. Even though tipping is a percentage, right, so the tips are rising as the cost of goods rise! America is actually cheap for groceries and fuel, while it is expensive to stay in the big cities and eat at restaurants. It is not just the prices stopping us from hitting America in big numbers. It is the fact you can show up and have the border guards simply turn you round at the border and send you home. Which is a much better scenario than being strip-searched and then sent home. America's border police are mean at the best of times. I've travelled to America with someone who, long ago, had a work visa to work in the US. That reliably sets off a ping in the system and they would get dragged off for interrogation — we are there for a two-week holiday but the system presumably worries this person is back trying to work in America illegally. You wouldn't want to have a connecting flight. If America was weird about their border before, it is way worse now. The odds are still good, you'll get in — hundreds of Australians are still going to America every day. But if you have tattoos or have ever posted something mean about America on social media, you may feel better not going. If it's purely a leisure trip, Tokyo Disney seems like a much safer option than Disneyland LA. In Japan the populace is not rioting and the police are not arresting foreigners without due process. You can catch a subway instead of renting a Chevrolet Traverse the size of a semi-trailer, and your odds of being involved in a mass shooting are much lower. There's been 199 mass shootings in America so far this year and, it seems, none in Japan since 2023. I would really like to see the Grand Canyon one day and maybe spend some time in the Rocky Mountains. But I might wait for the Aussie dollar to rise and America's insecurities to fall, before I in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
