March was a bit of a mixed bag for the cruise industry. The month started with travel advisors gathering in Amsterdam to grow their river cruise business and ended with the tragic collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge to collapse. In between, cruise lines also grappled with violence in Haiti and an array of issues at sea.? ?

But it wasn't all bad news this month. Cruise lines announced new itineraries, ordered new ships and even helped discover a previously unknown penguin colony. Read on for this month's top stories.

On March 26, the container ship Dali lost power and collided with one of the support pillars holding up the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Six construction workers who were filling potholes on the bridge are missing and presumed dead.

The Port of Baltimore is closed indefinitely, and cruise lines are monitoring the situation closely. At least one line, Carnival Cruise Line, has moved its operations to Norfolk, Virginia. Its ship, the Carnival Legend, had been scheduled to return to Baltimore on March 31 but will instead dock in Norfolk

"We are deeply saddened by the tragedy and collapse of the Key Bridge that occurred last night and extend our support and heartfelt prayers to all those impacted," said Anne Madison, a spokeswoman for Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), in an emailed statement to USA Today.

More than 1,300 U.S.-based travel advisors and suppliers attended the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) River Cruise Expo in Amsterdam from March 13-17. They explored 12 ships from nine cruise lines, networked with cruise line executives, learned new marketing tricks and explored how to grow their river cruise business.

While there, Riverside Luxury Cruises also christened its newest ship, Riverside Debussy.

Royal Caribbean initially said it would continue visiting its private island destination in Haiti, despite the United States Department of State issuing a Level 4 Travel Advisory (Do Not Travel) due to increasing violence. But, a few days later, the cruise line did an abrupt about-face and said it was temporarily canceling all calls to Labadee.??

Hurtigruten doubled down on its already robust Northern Lights offerings this month by appointing the world¡¯s first ¡°chief aurora chaser¡± and extended its Northern Lights Promise to voyages that depart starting mid-September.?

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As Disney Cruise Line continues to rapidly expand its fleet, it unveiled the name of its newest ship: Disney Destiny. The vessel, which is scheduled to launch next year, will have a ¡°Heroes and Villains¡± theme

The popular line also unveiled more information about its planned expansion of Disney Lookout Cay, its private island experience in The Bahamas, and shared Jordin Sparks¡¯ new signature song for Disney Treasure.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises announced its 2027 world cruise, which will visit 40 countries in 140 days. Those who opt to book the 4,443-square-foot Regent Suite for the entire voyage will pay $1.7 million for two guests.

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Four years after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, MSC Cruises became the first cruise line to resume sailings from mainland China this month. MSC Bellissima made her maiden call in Shanghai with cruise executives, travel advisors, local dignitaries and other VIPs onboard.

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Starting this fall, HX (formerly Hurtigruten Expeditions) will begin offering all-inclusive expedition cruises. The company will begin rolling out the new pricing structure in October for voyages heading to Antarctica and the Galapagos, followed by all other cruises.

Also this month, Silversea expanded its pricing structure to offer three different fare options.?

Two crew members were killed in an incident involving an accidental steam release aboard Holland America Line¡¯s ship Nieuw Amsterdam.

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Crew aboard Royal Caribbean¡¯s newest ship, Icon of the Seas, rescued 14 people who¡¯d been stranded at sea for eight days. The ship was on its way to Honduras when it stopped to provide aid to a small vessel that was adrift off the coast of Cozumel.

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Villa Vie Residences plans to launch its 3.5-year cruise in May¡ªand, this month, it revealed that it officially has a ship. The company took possession of MS Braemer, a 30-year-old ship that used to belong to Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, and began renovations.

It¡¯s not every day that scientists discover an entirely new colony of penguins. But researchers aboard Viking Octantis did just that in January, the cruise line announced this month. They located a previously unknown group of chinstrap penguins while visiting Astrolabe Island.??

A Royal Caribbean crew member was arrested on suspicion of hiding cameras in stateroom bathrooms and secretly filming guests, including children.

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As flexible and remote work arrangements remain popular, Virgin Voyages invited professionals to spend a month working¡ªand sailing¡ªaboard its ship Scarlet Lady this summer.

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Several line unveiled new offerings and itineraries this month. Royal Caribbean will offer sailings with The Wiggles in Australia, for example, while Windstar Cruises will host culinary-themed cruises in partnership with the James Beard Foundation. Seabourn announced its 2025-26 line-up, and Sea Cloud Cruises unveiled a special sailing with George Washington's Mount Vernon.

Carnival Corporation announced that it has ordered its fifth Excel-class ship for Carnival Cruise Line. The news comes on the heels of Carnival ordering a fourth Excel-class ship last month.