Crippled cruise ship Carnival Splendor returns

• The Australian
• November 12, 2010 12:00AM
•   PULLED by two tugboats, the disabled passenger ship Carnival Splendor was expected to reach the shore overnight. The cruise line was trying to make amends with 3299 passengers - including 24 Australians - whose holiday to the Mexican Riviera went sour.
  "We know we ruined their vacations," Gerry Cahill, president and chief executive of Carnival Cruise Lines, said yesterday.
  Since an engine compartment fire on Monday, passengers and 1167 crew on the 290m ship have been without air-conditioning or hot food. The dream of sumptuous banquets was replaced by meals of bread, Spam, canned fruit, canned milk and munchies such as Pop Tarts - delivered by US navy airlift from the carrier Ronald Reagan.
  The biggest inconvenience - the lack of flush toilets - was cured within hours of the fire.
  No one was injured in the fire, which broke out on the first day of a scheduled seven-day trip from Long Beach to Puerto Vallarta. To make amends for the ruined vacations, Carnival has agreed to a full refund, reimbursement for travel expenses and a free cruise of comparable value. Hotel reservations and travel arrangements are being made by company workers.
  Los Angeles Times