The incident occurred when the ship was sailing about 20 miles off the coast of Hilo at about 5:30 a.m. Monday. Princess Cruises said a propulsion circuit breaker in the aft electrical switchboard suffered a significant failure, resulting in smoke and a small fire that was contained within the switchboard.
The incident was isolated but knocked out power, resulting in the use of emergency lighting and limited air conditioning for a short time. Power was restored, and all hotel and guest services resumed operation.
The call at Hilo was canceled so Grand Princess could proceed directly to Honolulu where the technical team met the ship on its scheduled 7 a.m. arrival.
A Princess spokeswoman told Seatrade Cruise News an update should be available shortly. Â
Grand Princess is carrying 2,592 passengers and 1,095 crew. The ship is on a 15-day Hawaii cruise that departed San Francisco Nov. 25.Â
Â
