The Clipper Pacific (left) is being detained by the Coast Guard in New York City for hull damage and 66 other violations found during an inspection.
The 637-foot ship was Royal Caribbean’s Song of Norway, the first cruise ship built for the line, when it entered service in 1970. The ship is now owned by Miami-based International Shipping Partners, which charters the vessel to Peace Boat, a Japan-based nonprofit that promotes peace, human rights and responsible travel.
The Clipper Pacific was carrying about 1,200 passengers and crew on a trip from Greenland when it entered New York Harbor on Sunday morning, the New York Coast Guard reported. The vessel reported it had a one-inch gash on its hull that was sustained prior to arrival in New York, said the Coast Guard.
When it performed a routine safety inspection of the ship, the Coast Guard discovered, among other things, lifeboat damage, life jacket infractions and fire safety violations.
The ship sails around the world for Peace Boat on what it calls "peace voyages." To mark Peace Boat’s 25th anniversary, the organization was making its first-ever visit to Iceland and Greenland.
The Coast Guard said it would submit a repair proposal to the ship on Thursday that would include making temporary repairs to allow the Clipper Pacific to continue to its next port of call, La Guaira, Venezuela.
Royal Caribbean operated the 23,000-gross-ton ship on cruises out of Miami until the mid-1990s.