A fire broke out on the Bahamas-bound Carnival Freedom cruise ship, causing the cancellation of the ship's upcoming trips. The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon, when a passenger discovered flames and smoke pouring out of the ship's tail.

Heath Barnes, a passenger from Woodsboro, Maryland, initially thought his nephew and his nephew's friends were joking when they informed him about the fire. However, his skepticism quickly turned to alarm as he witnessed the flames firsthand from his balcony. According to Barnes, the fire was accompanied by the loudest thunder and lightning he had ever heard.

The blaze reportedly started on the port side of the ship's exhaust funnel, around 3:15 p.m. local time. While witnesses speculated that the ship may have been struck by lightning, the cause of the fire is still under investigation. In response, the ship's fire response team worked diligently to extinguish the flames.

Captain of the Carnival Freedom cruise ship, along with the crew, navigated the ship towards an area of heavy rain in an attempt to help put out the fire. Ultimately, the fire was brought under control approximately two hours after it first ignited. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported among the guests. However, two members of the firefighting crew required minor treatment for smoke inhalation.

As a result of the fire, a portion of the exhaust funnel collapsed onto deck 10 of the ship. The incident occurred approximately 20 miles off Eleuthera Island, Bahamas, while the ship was en route to Freeport.

Passengers were instructed to remain in their cabins until around 5:40 p.m. Following the incident, the cruise line ensured that passengers were able to attend dinner as planned that evening. The US Coast Guard has been notified about the incident, and investigations are ongoing to determine the exact cause of the fire.

On Sunday, Carnival Cruise Line announced that the damage to the ship was worse than initially reported. Subsequently, the Carnival Freedom cruise trips scheduled to depart from Port Canaveral, Florida on March 25 and March 29 have been canceled. The cruise line cited the need for immediate repairs to stabilize the damaged funnel as the reason for the cancellations.

Passengers who were affected by the canceled trips will receive full refunds and future cruise credits. The ship will return to Port Canaveral overnight to disembark guests before heading to the Freeport shipyard on Monday afternoon to commence the required repairs.

For Cruise ship enthusiast Barnes, who had been on his 18th Carnival Cruise trip, this particular incident was the most eventful. He expressed understanding and attributed the fire to Mother Nature's uncontrollable forces.

The Carnival Freedom cruise ship incident serves as a reminder of the unexpected challenges faced by maritime voyages, demonstrating the importance of preparedness and safety measures onboard.