Cruise ship rescues 17 people in ocean rescue

The crew of cruise ship Carnival Dream helped to rescue 17 people stranded in the Belize Channel on Wednesday (17 May 2023), after the group’s boat capsized.

The 1000ft Carnival Dream was heading to the Mexican Caribbean resort island of Cozumel, when the ship’s officers spotted the capsized boat and its distressed passengers sitting on the upturned hull.

Captain Francesco Fiorentino’s crew immediately alerted the Belize Coast Guard, while lowering one of its shipboard tenders into the water. Working in conjunction with locally launched small boats from Belize, Carnival Dream helped to safely recover all 17 people stranded on the over turned craft.

All members of the group rescued were said to be in good condition before being transferred to the Belize Coast Guard.

Following the incident, Carnival Dream was able to resume its voyage without any itinerary changes, and docked in Cozumel as scheduled. The ship was on a six-day cruise out of Galveston, Texas, that departed 14 May.

It’s been an exciting month for the Carnival Dream and its crew. At the beginning of May, a US Coast Guard helicopter almost crashed into the ocean during a medical evacuation of a 76-year old passenger suffering heart attack-like symptoms.

The Coast Guard shared a video of the successful medical evacuation.