The Ruby Princess, a Princess Cruise ship, crashed into Pier 27 in San Francisco Bay on Thursday, damaging both its hull and the pier. Thankfully, no injuries or significant risks were reported due to the accident. However, this isn’t the first time this particular ship has sparked headlines in San Francisco.
In March of 2022, the Ruby Princess sailed into San Francisco Bay after a 15-day Panama Canal cruise. Despite all passengers and crew being fully vaccinated, some onboard were infected with COVID-19. However, the total number of infections was not disclosed.
Earlier in 2022, the Ruby Princess arrived in San Francisco after a 10-day cruise to Mexico, with another COVID-19 outbreak onboard. In this instance, 12 people onboard tested positive for the virus.
In another incident this year, upon its arrival in Galveston, Texas, following a roundtrip voyage to the Caribbean and Mexico, over 300 people onboard the Ruby Princess were infected with what was believed to be norovirus, prompting an investigation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Though the Ruby Princess has had several troubled arrivals in San Francisco and Galveston, none compare to the Grand Princess’s arrival in San Francisco in March of 2020. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Grand Princess arrived in San Francisco with an onboard outbreak that resulted in over 100 people falling ill and seven deaths. With 3,533 passengers aboard, the ship idled off the Bay Area coast for days before passengers were finally allowed to disembark.
These series of incidents revolving around the Ruby Princess underline the importance of strict health and safety measures in the cruise ship industry, particularly in times of pandemic. It also highlights the ongoing challenges faced by maritime law in responding to such incidents.