Travel

Cruise ship that took out Ketchikan dock heads out of port

A Royal Caribbean Cruises ship that crashed into a pier during an attempted docking in Ketchikan on Friday has left the port, the company said Saturday.

The Celebrity Infinity set sail for Vancouver, British Columbia, where it is set to arrive as scheduled on Sunday, after its crew repaired minor scraping to the hull above the waterline, company spokesman Owen Torres wrote in an email.

Additional repairs will be done in Vancouver said U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson Shawn Eggert.

The collision, which was recorded by onlookers, caused an estimated $2 million to $3 million in damage, Ketchikan ports and harbors director Steve Corporon said.

Torres said the ship hit the pier "due to inclement weather." Winds were gusting at 45 mph as the ship approached the dock.

But Chief Petty Officer Eggert said he "can't confirm what the cruise line is saying about the wind or the weather" because the Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment in Ketchikan is still investigating.

Jeannette Lee Falsey

Jeannette Lee Falsey is a former reporter for Alaska Dispatch News. She left the ADN in 2017.

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