UPDATE:
Carnival provided Cruise Hive with the following statement:
On Friday afternoon, a craft with 12 individuals on board, presumed to be of Cuban nationality, were spotted. Carnival Splendor stood by per the instructions of U.S. Coast Guard until a USCG cutter arrived on scene at which point the ship was released to continue on its voyage. Vessel was in the Caribbean sea approximately 30 nautical miles off the coast of Cuba.
PREVIOUSLY:
On Friday afternoon the Carnival Splendor came across a small raft full of people not far from Cuba.
According to a passenger who was on the ship the small raft was spotted while the ship was sailing back to Florida and just 50 miles away from Key West. The ship apparently waited around two hours until the U.S. Coast Guard arrived. In situations like this, it is likely that the Cuban migrants are eventually sent back to their home country. YouTube user perezmontejo caught footage of the small raft from onboard the 113,300 gross ton vessel.
Watch The Video Below:
One passenger posted on Facebook “Very scary to see people’s (including children) life’s in the hands of the sea. All they had were regular boat paddles and straw hats on to protect them from the sun beating down on them!” The people on the primitive raft refused any help from the Carnival Splendor crew as they wanted to continue towards the United States.
