An investigation has been launched after the world's longest cruise ship, Harmony of the Seas, smashed its way into dock.
Passengers aboard the ship had anything but a harmonious entry into port as they were left screaming in fear.
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The Royal Caribbean cruise ship smashed into a pier at around 7:00am local time on Thursday morning as it attempted to dock in Falmouth, Jamaica, much to the panic of those on board the vessel.
Footage of the incident captured the panicked screams of passengers as they could do nothing but watch as their ship smashed through the dock.
The cruise ship has since been able to continue its journey as it takes passengers on seven-day trips around the Caribbean.
At 1,188ft long there is no ship on earth that can match Harmony of the Seas for length, and if you lay the 984ft Eiffel Tower on its side it wouldn't measure up.
A craft like that is probably rather hard to handle, especially considering it weighs 226,963 gross tonnes. Fortunately that size and weight meant that in a collision between the ship and a concrete pier it was the pier that came off second best.
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Her size is only outdone by her sister ships, Symphony of the Seas and Wonder of the Seas, with the latter being the largest cruise ship in the world by virtue of being about 10,000 tonnes heavier than Harmony.
Harmony cost more than $1 billion to build and has space for thousands of guests on board, who can make use of the 18 decks packed with swimming pools, slides and a theatre with space for 1,400 people.
Port authorities confirmed that a joint investigation into the cause of the collision had been launched and that reconstruction work would need to be carried out, though the port would be able to operate as normal.
This is not the first incident the Harmony of the Seas has been involved in.
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In 2016 a crew member was killed and four more injured when a lifeboat broke loose and dropped down during a security drill, while in 2018 a crew member was reported missing and determined to have fallen overboard.
A 16-year-old Harmony passenger fell to his death in 2019 after trying to get into his cabin from a nearby balcony while the ship was docked in Haiti.
When contacted for comment on the collision, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson said: 'During arrival in Falmouth, Jamaica, Harmony of the Seas made contact with an extension part of the dock.
'There were no injuries to guests or crew and only minor cosmetic damage to the ship’s stern. The sailing will continue as scheduled.'
Featured Image Credit: Triangle NewsTopics: News
