Cruise Ship Ruby Princess Departs San Francisco After Hull Repairs
The cruise ship Ruby Princess, which struck a pier in San Francisco on Thursday, has been repaired and has headed out on her next commercial voyage.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, Ruby Princess struck the dock as she was approaching her berth. Her port quarter sustained a small gash above the waterline, and the Coast Guard ordered repairs before the ship could leave again.
Photos from the scene showed substantial dock damage, including a smashed fender, a small section of broken concrete and broken timber at the edge of the wharf. According to local media, the current in the harbor was running at about three knots at the time of the casualty.
After the allision, the tugs and the pilot took the ship back out into San Francisco Bay, spun it about several times, and then brought it safely back to the pier.
“There were no injuries and at no time were any guests or crew in danger,” Princess Cruises said in a statement.
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The cruise line's technical team got the repairs to the port quarter completed by Saturday, and photos taken by local news outlets showed that the hull penetrations had been closed up. The hull remained dented inwards in the location of the dock contact.
The Ruby Princess loaded new passengers for a shortened Alaska cruise itinerary, and the Coast Guard lifted its order at 0100 hours Sunday. At 1430 hours Sunday she departed.
The majority of passengers who had booked for the cruise chose to keep their plans. The cruise line offered a 75 percent discount on the trip plus a 75 percent credit towards a future voyage for those who decided to stay on board. For those who opted to cancel, the line offered a 100 percent discount plus a 50 percent credit towards a future trip. About 580 people opted out, and the ship departed with about 2680 passengers on board.
Ruby Princess' name became well-known after the notorious COVID outbreak on board at the outset of the pandemic. 2,600 passengers embarked on the ship at Sydney, Australia on March 8, 2020; about 660 would later test positive for COVID, 28 of whom would not survive. Hundreds of former passengers and family members have joined a lawsuit seeking damages from Princess Cruises.