Japanese Peace Cruise Pauses In Tampa For Repairs

A chartered cruise ship in Tampa today for emergency repairs to its 39-year-old hull disgorged 840 passengers for an unscheduled stay.

And when given the choice of spending the next several days at hotels in Tampa or at a Disney hotel, the majority - 540 of them - opted for Orlando.

The passengers, mostly Japanese, were aboard the Clipper Pacific, chartered by the Japan-based organization Peace Boat, which promotes peace and environmental issues. They found 22 buses at the Tampa cruise terminal ready to take them to hotels.

The unscheduled layover is an inconvenience, but the passengers are trying to make the best of it, said Stacy Hughes, a staff member of Peace Boat.

"When the announcement came [that] we would head for Tampa and Disney, there was quite a bit of applause," Hughes said.

The ship is on a cruise around the world to promote human rights, peace and sustainable development and is chartered by Peace Boat. A routine Coast Guard safety inspection when the vessel arrived at a New York port on July 13 uncovered safety problems and deterioration of the hull. Temporary repairs in New York made the ship seaworthy enough to travel to Tampa.

The ship will be placed in drydock at Tampa Bay Ship Repair, and ultrasonic images will be made of the hull to check for thickness, said Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Carroll, chief of the inspection division for a Coast Guard unit based in St. Petersburg. The hull has deteriorated, in part because it sat for four years in a Turkish harbor, Carroll said.

Repairs will require at least two full days in dry dock.

Passenger Ken Rhodes picked Orlando over Tampa for the unscheduled stay, though neither was his first choice. The cruise was supposed to be in Venezuela.

"Actually, I was hoping to be in a different port at this time," said Rhodes, who was born in New Zealand and now lives in Japan.

Kem Ihayashi also decided on Orlando.

"Just enjoy Disney," he said while boarding a bus that would take him to the Swan Hotel on Disney property.

Arranging for hotel rooms and transportation for 840 people was complicated because of short notice and a shifting arrival time. The necessity of making arrangements during the weekend didn't help, said Carol Eaves, vice president for Destination Tampa Bay.

The company arranges tours, meetings and events has handled groups this large. "But not on this short notice," Eaves said.

New York was the first U.S. destination the ship reached, so it was the ship's first Coast Guard inspection. All ships entering U.S. ports are inspected. In addition to problems with the hull, the inspection found shortcomings with the ship's firefighting equipment, the condition of lifeboats and lifejackets and with emergency plans and procedures, Carroll said.

The Clipper Pacific is relatively old for a cruise ship, commissioned in 1969. At 637 feet, it's smaller than most modern cruise ships.

In addition to the 840 passengers, the ship has a crew of 150.

Peace Boat made its first voyage in 1983. This cruise left Japan in May and is scheduled to be back in Japan on Aug. 25.

Reporter Neil Johnson can be reached at (813) 259-7731 or njohnson@tampatrib.com.