Cruise separates from pier, guest falls into water from gangway

A Norwegian Cruise Line ship separated from the pier amid strong winds, causing a guest to fall off the gangway into the water.

The passenger was in the process disembarking while Norwegian Epic was docked in Catania, Sicily, on May 30, according to a spokesperson for the cruise line.

“On duty crew members were able to immediately assist the guest from the water and see that they were evaluated by the medical team,” the spokesperson told USA TODAY in an emailed statement. “It was determined that they sustained minor injuries and were transported to a local hospital for further examination and treatment.”

The ship departed from Civitavecchia on May 24 for a 10-day cruise with stops in Italy, Greece, Malta and France, according to CruiseMapper.

Tyler Roys, Senior Meteorologist with AccuWeather, said there were wind gusts up to 45 miles per hour in the afternoon from the east-northeast. “Gusts like this are not usual as we move into the summer months but are more common during the winter season,” he said in an email.

The cruise line halted disembarkation and embarkation until the weather improved and “the ship was able to safely dock again.”

“During this interruption, our crew were actively attending to our guests until they were able to re-embark the ship,” the spokesperson added. “As always the safety of our guests and crew is our top priority.”

The incident isn’t the only one of its kind in recent years. Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Magic ship hit a pier in Jamaica during windy weather in February 2024. Wind also caused an MSC Cruises ship, MSC Sinfonia, and another Norwegian vessel, Norwegian Prima, to break from their moorings the previous month.

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Norwegian cruise guest falls from gangway, suffers ‘minor injuries’