An oil spill near the Houston Ship Channel has affected the schedules of cruise ships that sail out of Galveston and Houston, Texas.
On Saturday, a collision between a fuel barge and a cargo ship spilled as much as 170,000 gallons of tar-like oil into waters south of Houston.
The Carnival Magic and Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas pulled into the Port of Galveston about 10 hours late Sunday evening. The ships were ordered to slowly navigate into port so they would not create a large wake that could spread the spill.
The Carnival Triumph returned to port early Monday under the same conditions.
All three ships have not departed for their next cruise from Galveston, plus the Caribbean Princess has been stranded at Houston’s Bayport Cruise Terminal since Saturday, with passengers aboard.
It is not certain when the shipping channel will reopen.