Image: Flooding screenshots - Kendra the Cruising Farmer/Facebook. Harmony of the Seas: Royal Caribbean International
Passengers aboard Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas encountered an unexpected indoor water feature when a burst pipe sent warm water rushing through a passenger hallway and into several cabins.
The incident occurred on Tuesday, September 29 during the ship's current five-night Caribbean cruise from Port Canaveral.
Passenger Kendra, who posts online as The Cruising Farmer, captured video showing a substantial amount of water flowing along a Deck 10 corridor and pooling outside passenger cabins.
And despite the rather dramatic appearance, she had plenty of praise for the way Royal Caribbean's crew responded.
Video: Kendra the Cruising farmer / Facebook
Water floods Deck 10 aboard Harmony of the Seas
The flooding was caused by a burst water line, according to the passenger who filmed the incident.
Video shows water flowing through the hallway outside cabins 10319 and 10321, both Boardwalk balcony cabins towards the aft of the ship.
Kendra said the water was warm and created enough steam to fog up her phone while she was recording.
It was certainly an unusual sight even for an experienced cruiser. Kendra said it was a first for her after 92 cruises, while also noting that the crew was handling the situation well.
Several cabins were reportedly affected, although the total number and extent of any damage have not been publicly confirmed.
There's also no indication the incident affected the ship's ability to operate safely or caused any change to its itinerary.
Crew quickly stopped the leak
While the initial footage looks dramatic, the situation appears to have been brought under control relatively quickly.
In a follow-up shared less than two hours later, Kendra showed that the affected carpet had already been pulled up inside at least one cabin as crew worked to dry and repair the area.
She continued to praise crew members for their response and said they had been checking on affected passengers.
The incident therefore appears to have been a localised plumbing problem rather than any broader issue with the ship.
That's an important distinction when videos showing large quantities of water aboard a cruise ship inevitably start spreading online.
Harmony of the Seas continued its cruise
Harmony of the Seas is currently sailing a five-night round-trip cruise from Port Canaveral, Florida.
The itinerary includes visits to Perfect Day at CocoCay in The Bahamas and Cozumel, Mexico, before the ship is scheduled to return to Port Canaveral on October 1.
The flooding occurred around the time the ship was arriving in Cozumel on September 29.
There have been no reports of the incident causing a delay or change to the cruise itinerary.
Water leaks can look much worse than they are
Seeing water pouring through a cruise ship corridor understandably attracts attention, but an internal pipe failure is very different from a ship taking on seawater.
Modern cruise ships contain extensive plumbing systems servicing thousands of cabins, bathrooms, restaurants, pools and other facilities. Like plumbing in a hotel or large building, pipes and fittings can occasionally fail.
The immediate priorities are isolating the affected section, stopping the water supply and preventing damage from spreading.
In this case, passenger reports indicate crew members were already removing wet flooring and beginning the cleanup within a couple of hours.
Not Harmony's first unexpected indoor waterfall
Interestingly, this isn't the first time Harmony of the Seas has produced some rather spectacular footage involving water where passengers weren't expecting it.
In January 2023, water from one of the ship's pools cascaded down several decks after the ship made a sharp manoeuvre. The incident created what looked like a huge waterfall flowing towards the ship's Central Park neighbourhood. No serious injuries or damage were reported and the cruise continued.
Other Royal Caribbean ships have experienced localised leaks and sprinkler incidents as well, including a significant cabin leak aboard Allure of the Seas earlier this year.
For passengers unfortunate enough to have their cabin in the path of the water, however, even a relatively minor plumbing failure can make for a considerably more eventful cruise than planned.
