Cruise Ship Carrying 350 People Experiences Engine Failure Off Massachusetts Coast

U.S. Coast Guard tugboats surround an engine disabled cruise ship, on Sept. 7, 2018. Fox News

A cruise ship with over 350 people on board lost power off the coast of Massachusetts on Sept. 7, stranding its passengers who were just 180 miles from their final destination. Within hours the luxury liner was back in operation.

The 376-foot ship, known as Star Pride, was bound for New York from Reykjavik, Iceland on a 17-day cruise when it became stranded at Buzzards Bay, about 48 miles from Boston. The incident happened at approximately 3 p.m.

The ship became stranded because multiple engines automatically shut down after the engine systems started losing cooling water, according to an emailed statement from Windstar Cruises, the ship owner.

The captain of Star Pride contacted the U.S. Coast Guard for assistance at 3:20 p.m., according to a news release. The U.S. Coast Guard tweeted about the situation at the time.

After being stranded for two hours, the ship regained its ability to move. Tugboats then escorted the cruiseliner towards Newport, Rhode Island for a U.S. Coast Guard inspection.

“At no time were the 191 passengers and 160 crew and ship at risk,” said the statement.

The Star Pride subsequently passed the inspection and resumed its voyage towards New York, the U.S. Coast Guard tweeted early the next morning.

This is not the first time Star Pride has encountered problems during a voyage. On Dec. 22, 2015, the ship experienced a grounding in the reefs of Panama, according to Cruise Industry News. The guests and crew members on board were safe, but the ship was unable to sail. Six months later, Windstar Cruises announced they were spending $4.5 million to remodel the ship, according to a company statement.