HAL cruise ship resumes sailing after onboard fire
Holland America ship Westerdam has resumed its scheduled Alaska cruise following a delay caused by a small fire in a boiler room.
The ship originally departed Saturday afternoon but was forced to return to port just an hour into the sailing when staff spotted "a small fire in one of the boiler rooms," the cruise line said.
The Seattle Fire Department said crew members battled the fire with high-pressure mist and fire extinguishers and no evacuation was necessary.
The ship was carrying nearly 3,000 people and returned to Seattle unaided.
All hotel systems and guest services remained fully operational, HAL said.
HAL decided to bring back the vessel to port "out of an abundance of caution and in cooperation with the U.S. Coast Guard."
After getting the go-ahead from coastguard inspectors, the ship set sail again Sunday.
Public Relations Vice President Sally Andrews said the amended seven-day cruise will now miss out a port call at Sitka due to the time lost.
Passengers will be given a shipboard credit of $250 per room, Andrews said.
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