In Galveston, Texas, on Friday (January 5), NCL's Norwegian Prima cruise ship broke mooring lines as high wind gusts led one of her moorings to detach.
An NCL spokesperson reassured that all guests and crew remained safe, and no injuries were reported.
While the company didn't specify the wind speeds, gusts recorded at Scholes Airport reached 47 and 39 mph (21 and 17 m/s). Notably, the airport is situated ~6 mi (~10 km) from Port Galveston.
These gusts were attributed to a line of potent thunderstorms that swept through the Galveston area on Friday morning, bringing heavy rain and lightning.
Having concluded a week-long voyage with stops in Mexico, Belize, and Honduras, the ship set out on the next scheduled sailing later that day, adhering to the planned itinerary.
This incident echoes a similar occurrence in July when Norwegian Prima broke from her mooring ropes in Zeebrugge Belgium, also due to adverse wind conditions.
For more Norwegian Prima incidents and accidents see the ship's CruiseMinus page.