PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. – Hurricane Cristobal forced three cruise ships to dock at Port Canaveral on Wednesday and the change of itineraries could benefit the local economy.
Passengers aboard the Celebrity Summit, Norwegian Breakaway and Carnival Pride had their port of call ships changed to the Space Coast because of the hurricane's effects.
"It was Monday afternoon, the captain came over the loud speaker and said 'due to the storm that was turning into a hurricane, that we were being diverted, that we were coming here,'" said passenger Phyllis Sapherstein, who was aboard Norweigan Breakaway, based out of New York, for her 30th wedding anniversary. "Where we were happy to hear you had sunny skies."
The ships were supposed to head to Grand Turk, Bermuda or Half Moon Cay but Hurricane Cristobal churning in the Atlantic forced cruise officials to change the port of call.
"The waves were up there and they were crashing and I said 'Renny I'm going to get my life jacket,'" said Ronnie Williams, who was riding on Carnival Pride. Their ship is now heading to Nassau.
The cruise lines were encouraging passengers to venture out into Cocoa Beach and maybe the attractions while their made their call. All three ships are scheduled to set sail later Wednesday evening.