It was the last thing Carnival Sunshine passengers expected as they returned to the port of Charleston on Monday afternoon. Passengers had just endured a rocky cruise to the Bahamas, only to arrive in a flooded parking lot and wreck their cars.
Severe weather struck the east coast over the weekend, causing gale-force winds, heavy rain and flooding. By midday Sunday, Charleston received nearly four inches of rain and the tide reached over nine feet.
When passengers disembarked and arrived at the flooded cruise terminal parking lot, they found their vehicles damaged, if not completely ruined, by salt water.
“It was pretty disturbing and very overwhelming,” Kit Herold, a passenger who was on board with her two teenage daughters, told USA TODAY.
Herold bought the four-day cruise as a Christmas present. She drove four hours from her home in Forest City, North Carolina, to Charleston in her new 2023 Kia Sportage for the cruise.
People stood there in disbelief, she said. “You could hear people screaming in tears, their cars wouldn't start. They didn’t know what to do.”
A spokesperson for Carnival Cruise Lines told USA TODAY via email: “We regret that some of our guests' vehicles parked on port property were affected by the recent storm.”
Carnival recommended that passengers contact the appropriate parking authorities while clarifying that the parking lot was not a corporate facility. “We have helped in some ways where we could, such as helping guests connect with their insurance providers,” the cruise line added.
The cruise lines were aware of the “astronomically bad weather,” as Herold put it, on the ship. Due to the rough seas, many passengers felt they had “had enough of their vacation and were ready to get off the ship.”
Passengers had been told the ship's arrival at the port was delayed due to “excessive flooding,” but there was no reason to prepare, Herold said.
One of the first groups to arrive at the parking lot, Herold found her new car – which had less than 10,000 miles on it – with its airbag deployed, four inches of water in the car and the doors unlocked.
“I was in disbelief because it was a brand new car,” Herold said. “I was angry. I cried and my girls stood there wide-eyed, not knowing what to do.”
Herold said she received no help from the South Carolina Ports Authority or Carnival employees, but two police officers were on scene.
The S.C. Ports Authority did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment but provided the following statement ABC News:
Recent record high tides and unprecedented flooding throughout downtown Charleston resulted in some cruise ships being affected. The South Carolina Ports team worked closely with passengers to provide assistance from the moment they arrived until the last passenger exited the terminal. Port Police ensured that passengers had the necessary reports to document the damage for their insurance companies. Passengers will not be charged for additional days to use the parking lot and will be able to park their vehicle for as long as necessary. Port staff worked around the clock to call towing companies on passengers' behalf, assist with jumping vehicles and pumping out water, and help them find transportation to area hotels.
The company said it accepts no liability for vehicles or personal items left in passenger parking spaces.
Herold called her insurer, who told her they would arrange a tow and a rental car so she could drive home to North Carolina. When Herold took an Uber to Enterprise, they told her there were no cars left and she would have to wait a few hours until a car was available.
Herold said she felt “very blessed” when the airbag deployed and her car was no longer drivable. “A lot of people were told to go home and they ended up stranded on Interstate 26.”
She believes the SC Ports Authority “could step in and refund us the money we paid to trust them with our vehicles,” particularly because they “did not offer any assistance (for) the catastrophic event that occurred.” “.
She said she is still waiting for an answer about the condition of her car. “I have no idea, I’m in the dark.”
Kathleen Wong is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Hawaii. You can reach her at [email protected].