Carnival cruise ship rescues 5 people from small boat 'in distress' near Cuba
A Carnival Cruise Line ship rescued five people from a small boat in distress this week.
Carnival Paradise conducted the rescue south of Cabo San Antonio, Cuba on May 14, the company told Paste BN in an emailed statement. The ship departed from Tampa, Florida, on May 12 for a Western Caribbean cruise and was between stops in Key West and Jamaica’s Montego Bay at the time, according to CruiseMapper.
“The five people who requested rescue were part of a larger group on board the small boat,” the cruise line’s statement read. “The other occupants did not wish to join the ship but were given food and water by the ship's team.” Carnival did not identify the people rescued.
Following the rescue, the ship continued on its way to Jamaica.
The cruise line notified the U.S. Coast Guard, according to spokesperson Eric Rodriguez. "We are currently working with Carnival to conduct a transfer of the survivors to a Coast Guard asset at the moment," he said in an email.
Carnival ships have rescued a number of people at sea in recent years. Carnival Radiance came to the aid of 25 people stranded in a small boat off Mexico’s coast in May 2024, shortly after Carnival Paradise saved 28 Cuban nationals from a vessel that was adrift in April of that year.
This story was updated to add new information.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for Paste BN based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.