Bahamas Celebration as Prinsesse Ragnhild.
History
Name
  • 1981–2008: MS Prinsesse Ragnhild
  • 2008–2015: MS Bahamas Celebration
  • 2015: MS Celebration
Owner
Operator
Port of registry
BuilderHDW, Kiel, West Germany
Yard number164[1]
Laid down29 February 1980[3]
Launched31 July 1980[3]
Completed30 January 1982[3]
Maiden voyage1981
In service1981[1]
Out of service31 October 2014[4]
IdentificationIMO number: 7904891[1]
FateScrapped in Alang, India, 2015
General characteristics (as built, 1980)[1]
TypeCruiseferry
Tonnage
Length170 m (557 ft 9 in)
Beam24 m (78 ft 9 in)
Draught5.80 m (19 ft 0 in)
Ice class1B 0
Installed power
Propulsion2 Controlable pitch propellors
Speed21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Capacity
  • 892 passengers
  • 892 passenger berths
  • 603 cars
General characteristics (as rebuilt, 1992)[3]
Tonnage
Length205.25 m (673 ft 5 in)
Beam24 m (78 ft 9 in)
Draught6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Depth13 m (42 ft 8 in)
Ice class1B
Installed power
  • 4 × Stork-Wärtsilä 9FEDH240 diesels
  • 2 × Stork-Wärtsilä 9FEDH240G
  • 36,356 kW (combined)
PropulsionTwo controllable pitch propellers
Capacity
  • 1,900 passengers
  • 1,875 passenger berths
  • 700 cars
NotesOtherwise the same as built

MS Bahamas Celebration was a midsize cruise ship formerly operated by Celebration Cruise Line. Between March 2009 and October 2014, she operated two- and three-day cruises from Port Everglades to the Bahamas.[5] In March 2010 she started operating two-day cruises from the Port of Palm Beach.[6]

The ship was built in 1981 by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in Kiel, Germany, as MS Prinsesse Ragnhild for Jahre Line. In 1990 she was transferred to Color Line. In 1992 she was extensively rebuilt at Astilleros Españoles in Cadiz, Spain. She was withdrawn from service with Color Line on 6 May 2008.[1] She was irreparably damaged after a collision with a submerged object on 31 October 2014 and replaced by the MS Grand Celebration.[4]

Service history

Prinsesse Ragnhild

MS Prinsesse Ragnhild

From 1981 to 2004, MS Prinsesse Ragnhild operated on the Oslo to Kiel route, first for Jahre Line and, from 1990 onwards, for their successor Color Line. In 1992 she was radically rebuilt at Astilleros Españoles, Cadiz, increasing her length by 35.25 meters and passenger capacity by 858.[1]

On 8 July 1999, there was a fire in the engine room, resulting in a complete evacuation of the ship.[1] With the Scandinavian Star disaster fresh in mind, a full emergency was called and all ships in the area came to the rescue. Helicopters and firecrews from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark all participated in the rescue effort, and the evacuation was described by most passengers as "controlled". However, one woman died after the fire as a result of a heart attack.[7] After repairs at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg, Germany, the ship resumed operations on the third of September. On 1 March 2002, the ship suffered another engine room fire, which was quickly extinguished.[1]

MS Prinsesse Ragnhild in July 2005

In 2003 Color Line spent sixty million Norwegian kroner to upgrade the onboard interior. In 2005 she was transferred to the new Bergen—Stavanger—Hirtshals route, when Color Line introduced the new MS Color Fantasy on the Oslo—Kiel route.[1] On 8 January 2008 Prinsesse Ranghild was moved to the Oslo–Hirtshals route, replacing the MS Color Festival, which was sold to Corsica Ferries.[1][8] In April 2008, Color Line announced that due to "negative financial development" in the service, the Oslo—Hirtshals route was to be closed on 6 May 2008, and the Prinsesse Ragnhild was placed for sale.[9] Following closure of the route, the Prinsesse Ragnhild was laid up at Sandefjord.[1]

On 3 September 2008, Color Line reported that the Prinsesse Ragnhild had been sold to Celebration Cruise Holdings for twenty-three million euro.[10][11] The ship was delivered to her new owners on 1 October 2008, renamed Bahamas Celebration, and left Sandefjord on the same date for Grand Bahama Island.[1]

Listing and Scrapping

Bahamas Celebration in Nassau, Bahamas on 12 May 2009.

On 31 October 2014, Bahamas Celebration struck an unknown object while departing from Freeport, opening up a small hole in the port side. The ship was able to return to the port and all passengers and crew were able to disembark and no injuries were reported. As of 3 November 2014, the hole had been patched, but the ship was still listing by about 10 degrees and salvage crews were trying to assess the damage.[12][13][14]

In December 2014 it was announced that the ship could not be repaired and would be replaced by the MS Grand Celebration, which would be operated by the newly formed Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line.[4] On 24 January 2015 it was announced by Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line that the ship has been sold for scrap.[15] The ship arrived at the scrapping yard on 29 October and was gone by the end of 2016.[16]

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Asklander, Micke. "M/S Prinsesse Ragnhild (1981)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  2. ↑ "Celebration Cruise Line". Celebration Cruise Line. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Bahamas Celebration (12433)". DNV Vessel Register. DNV. Retrieved 3 August 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 "Port of Palm Beach to get new cruise ship in February".
  5. ↑ "Eyewitness Everglades". Maritime Matters. 28 February 2009. Archived from the original on 19 February 2009. Retrieved 1 March 2009.
  6. ↑ Paul Quinlan (22 January 2010). "Cruise ship to move to Port of Palm Beach, offer sails to Bahamas". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  7. ↑ Boyle, Ian. "Prinsesse Ragnhild". Simplon Postcards. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  8. ↑ (in Norwegian) Color Line press release 21. 11. 2007: Color Line selger Color Festival for 400 mill kroner Archived 24 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 21 November 2007.
  9. ↑ "Color Line to focus on its engagement in cruise and transport". Color Line press release. Color Line. Archived from the original on 4 July 2007. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
  10. ↑ "M/S Prinsesse Ragnhild has been sold". Color Line press release. Color Line. 3 September 2008. Archived from the original on 4 July 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  11. ↑ "Color Line sells Prinsesse Ragnhild to Celebration Cruises for €23 million". Cruise Business Review. Cruise Media Oy Ltd. 3 September 2008. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  12. ↑ "UPDATED: Bahamas Celebration cruise ship runs aground: 'No danger of it sinking'". Tribune242.com. 1 November 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  13. ↑ "Bahamas Celebration cruise ship 'won't sail for first two weeks of November'". Tribune242.com. 3 November 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  14. ↑ "New vessel to resume Celebration cruise service". Retrieved 17 December 2014.
  15. ↑ "Bahamas Celebration Sold For Scrap". cruiseind.com. Retrieved 24 January 2015.
  16. ↑ "Scrapyard Update | Maritime Matters | Cruise and Maritime News". maritimematters.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2015.
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