More than a decade after Carnival Triumph was stranded at sea in what became infamously known as the “Poop Cruise,” a new Netflix documentary has reignited interest—and public scrutiny—around the 2013 ordeal.
Trainwreck: Poop Cruise, Netflix’s latest true-crime-style exposé, dives into the grim details of the Triumph’s ill-fated February voyage.
What began as a four-day Caribbean cruise from Galveston, Texas, turned into a foul-smelling nightmare when an engine room fire knocked out power, leaving more than 4,000 passengers and crew adrift in the Gulf of Mexico with no air conditioning, limited lighting, and overflowing sewage.
The documentary spares no detail in recounting the unsanitary conditions onboard, combining passenger footage and media coverage to paint a vivid—and at times nauseating—picture.
Viewers are treated to a harrowing play-by-play of clogged toilets, makeshift tent cities on deck, and the ship’s slow, towed return to port in Mobile, Alabama.
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In response to renewed attention from the documentary’s release, Carnival issued a formal statement to Cruise Radio, calling the incident “a teachable moment for the entire cruise industry.”
“A thorough investigation following the incident revealed a design vulnerability which was corrected and led Carnival Cruise Line to invest more than $500 million across our entire fleet,” Carnival said.
“This included comprehensive fire prevention and suppression, improved redundancy and enhanced management systems, all in support of our commitment to robust safety standards.”
Carnival added that these upgrades were implemented alongside its ongoing Health, Environmental, Safety and Security (HESS) protocols, reaffirming the company’s “commitment to industry leadership in this area.”
The Triumph incident was one of the most publicized cruise mishaps and became a defining moment for the industry’s safety reform.
While the ship has since been renamed and retrofitted, its “Poop Cruise” legacy clearly will not been forgotten.
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