Hawaii cruise thrown into chaos after emergency at sea forces port change

Cruise passengers expecting to visit Kauai, Hawaii, this week faced a scary “man overboard” alert. 

The Emerald Princess was about to enter a port at Nāwiliwili Harbor on the southeast side of the island on Feb 10. As the ship approached, a harbor pilot who was climbing a rope ladder from a pilot boat next to the ship slipped and fell into the water, according to Kauai Now and other accounts. 

“Scary situation off the coast of Kaua‘i on the [Princess Cruises] Emerald Princess,” user whereswaltertravel — otherwise known as travel agent and founder Walter Biscardi Jr. of Florida — wrote in a Feb. 10 Instagram post.

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“Our pilot slipped on the ladder trying to board the ship in very rough weather conditions,” he added. Biscardi was a passenger on the cruise. 

Witnesses said the pilot tried multiple times to board the ship during rough seas before he lost his footing. 

One passenger said the harbor pilot fell around 10 to 20 feet from the ship’s hull, not alongside it.

The crew on the boat worked quickly to rescue the pilot. Video shows that the man was pulled back onto the small vessel within minutes. 

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He did not seem to be injured, according to Cruise Hive.

“Fortunately, the crew on the boat were able to retrieve him safely,” Biscardi wrote on Instagram. 

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“Our port call is waived … but none of that matters when a life and death situation unfolds.”

After the cruise’s port call on Kauai was canceled due to the emergency, it traveled on to Maui — where the ship was slated for its next port call.

“Thanks to God for a quick recovery and a well-trained crew … [the harbor pilot] is healthy and fine,” a passenger told Cruise Hive. 

“I am amazed [at] how [the] well-trained and efficient Emerald staff handled everything quickly and professionally. Well done, crew.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Princess Cruise Line for comment.

The 3,090-passenger cruise ship departed Los Angeles on Feb. 4 for a 16-night Hawaii voyage, with Kauai scheduled as the first port call.

Trish Walters of Portland, Oregon, another passenger, recounted the frightening incident on social media.

Replying to a Facebook post by her husband, she mentioned how choppy the waters were that day.

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“Very windy — and kinda scary,” Walters wrote. 

“We could see the breakwaters for the Kaua‘i port, but the ship needed lots of room to fit into the harbor; the wind was pushing us pretty good, so the captain and port folks decided it was too dangerous to try.”

Strong winds caused massive breaking waves along the shorelines of the island, according to Cruise Hive.

The National Weather Service recently issued a high surf advisory.

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“We will come back to visit another day,” Biscardi said. 

“Thankful for the safety of the pilot and for the work all pilots do to help make our cruises amazing.”