As the fourth busiest cruise port in the United States, things can sometimes get rather chaotic at the Port of Galveston.
Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse – and the unusual – when a cruise shuttle contract worker was injured on the job on the morning of December 30, 2024.
The accident occurred just before 9 a.m. CST while the contract employee was unloading luggage in a parking lot for cruise guests using Galveston’s shuttle service.
A second shuttle arrived and collided with the luggage handler’s shuttle, hitting the 25-year-old worker in the process. It’s not clear what caused the crash, but port police are investigating the incident.
“A cruise shuttle contract worker was injured in a vehicle/pedestrian accident at 8:51 a.m. Monday at Port of Galveston Parking Lot A, 3200 Harborside Drive,” reads a report on the Galveston Wharves website.
“According to Port of Galveston police reports, the accident victim was unloading luggage from the shuttle when a second shuttle pulled up from the rear and collided with the first shuttle, hitting the man,” continues the incident report.
The luggage handler was promptly taken to the University of Texas Medical Branch Emergency Room for treatment. His condition is unclear and his identity has been kept confidential to protect the victim’s privacy.
Thankfully, no one else was injured in the collision – including guests of Carnival Breeze, which was the only cruise ship to dock in the port that morning.
The accident occurred in Parking Lot A – which is one of four Galveston Cruise Port economy parking lots (along with Lots B, C, and D) that use a park-and-ride shuttle bus to transport guests to and from their cars and the two cruise piers.
The shuttle service itself is free for cruise guests – unless they would like to tip for good driving or for assistance with their luggage.
However, guests do need to pre-reserve their parking space in advance and will need to pay a fee based on how many days their car remains parked. For economy lots like Parking Lot A, the daily rate is currently $20 per day.
Another Car Crash in Galveston
Somewhat strangely given the timing, another automobile/pedestrian accident actually unfolded in the port just about a year before Monday’s incident – taking place on December 2, 2023, at Cruise Terminal 28.
During a seemingly routine disembarkation process from Carnival Dream, a family of six was struck by a car that accidentally crashed through a metal barrier – with the driver allegedly accelerating when they meant to reverse.
Four of the unidentified family members were directly hit and had to be taken to the hospital, with two admitted for overnight observation.
While it’s surely not the way the family wanted to conclude their 6-night Western Caribbean Cruise, everyone involved was expected to make a full recovery.
Read Also: Galveston Cruise Port – Essential Guide for Your Cruise
While security measures are in place to keep everyone safe – which are led by the Port of Galveston Police Department – sometimes accidents do still occur in the never-ending rush of activity.
The Port of Galveston has been experiencing a period of growth – with nearly 1.5 million cruise passengers embarking on 354 sailings from the Texas port in 2023.
But as of December 6, Galveston exceeded 1.5 million passengers for 2024 – meaning another record-breaking year has just concluded.
Of course, millions of cruise passengers means that thousands of people – many of whom are likely unfamiliar with the port – may be navigating the 840-acre facility by car and by foot at any given time.
The roads can get particularly crowded when guests are trying to leave after disembarking and while others are arriving to embark on their sailings at the same time – especially when multiple ships are docked.
Lately, the port has had a lot of “three ship” days with three cruise ships in the port at once – but there has been the occasional “four ship” day here and there.
