Carnival Ecstasy

Carnival Ecstasy (formerly Ecstasy) was a Fantasy-class cruise ship operated by Carnival Cruise Line. Built by Kværner Masa-Yards at its Helsinki New Shipyard in Helsinki, Finland, she was floated out on January 6, 1991, and christened by television hostess, entertainer and long time Carnival spokesperson Kathie Lee Gifford. Her inaugural voyage began on April 2, 1991.[2] During 2007, in common with all of her Fantasy-class sisters, she had the prefix Carnival added to her name.[3] With the departure of the Carnival Fantasy in 2020, the Carnival Ecstasy became the oldest ship in the fleet until her retirement in October 2022. She was replaced by Carnival Spirit out of Mobile, Alabama in October 2023.

Unlike her recently retired sister ships, Carnival Ecstasy offered a farewell cruise itinerary prior to her own retirement. Subsequently, the ship was beached for scrapping in Turkey on November 8, 2022.[4][5]

Accidents and incidents

Fire

On the afternoon of July 20, 1998, Ecstasy departed the Port of Miami, Florida, en route to Key West, Florida, with 2,565 passengers and 916 crew members aboard. A fire started in the main laundry room and spread through the ventilation system to the aft mooring deck, where mooring lines ignited. As Ecstasy was attempting to reach an anchorage north of the Miami sea buoy, the vessel lost power and began to drift. The master then radioed the U.S. Coast Guard for assistance. Six tugboats responded to help fight the fire and tow Ecstasy. The fire was brought under control by onboard firefighters and was extinguished about 9:09 PM. Fourteen crew members and eight passengers suffered minor injuries. One passenger required medical treatment as a result of a pre-existing condition and was categorized as a serious injury victim because of the length of her hospital stay. Losses from the fire and associated damages exceeded $17 million.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of fire aboard Ecstasy was the unauthorized welding by crew members in the main laundry that ignited a large accumulation of lint in the ventilation system and the failure of Carnival Cruise Lines to maintain the laundry exhaust ducts in a fire-safe condition. Contributing to the extensive fire damage on the ship was the lack of an automatic fire suppression system on the aft mooring deck and the lack of an automatic means of mitigating the spread of smoke and fire through the ventilation ducts. Passengers received a full refund and were offered a complimentary cruise for the inconvenience.[12]

Suicide

On July 1, 2007, David Ritcheson, the victim of the April 22, 2006 Harris County, Texas assault incident, jumped off the deck of Carnival Ecstasy and died.[13]

Elevator death

During December of 2015, a crew-member of the ship was working on an elevator while on-board the Carnival Ecstasy.[14] The ship had disabled an elevator safety mechanism whilst the elevator was in maintenance, when the elevator came down, killing the man.[15] A couple, Matt Davis and his partner, witnessed the scene whilst on their way to dinner, filming the occurrence.[15]

owner	Carnival Corporation house flag.svg Carnival Corporation & plc
operator	Carnival Corporation house flag.svg Carnival Cruise Lines (1991–2022)
registry	Nassau Bahamas, 🇵🇦
builder	Kvaerner Masa-Yards Helsinki New Shipyard *Helsinki, Finland
yard number	480
launched	January 6, 1991
completed	1991
sponsor	Kathie Lee Gifford
maiden voyage	April 2, 1991
in service	1991–2022
refit	2009, 2014, January 2017, October 2019
out of service	October 15, 2022, Last Tracked at Port Of Mobile on October 10, 2022 (according to vesseltracker.com)
identification	Call sign: H3GR *
fate	Sold for scrap in October 2022. Beached at Aliağa, Turkey on 8 November 2022.
notes	‡R1R‡

Areas of operation

Accidents and incidents

Fire

Suicide

Elevator death

Refits

Final season and scrapping

External links

References