Move to Carnival Ships Delayed

September 7, 2005

Move to Carnival Ships Delayed
September 7, 2005 – The relocation of Hurricane Katrina evacuees from the Houston Astrodome to three of Carnival Cruise Lines’ ships has been put on hold. The ships, the Ecstasy, the Sensation and the Holiday, had been chartered to the Military Sealift Command on behalf of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to house as many as 7,000 refugees for up to six months.

According to a statement from Unified Command here, storm refugees "prefer to stay where they are right now" as they grapple with dramatic changes to their lives or focus on finding family members.

Incident Commander Joe Leonard said, "For residents, another immediate relocation is simply too much, too soon."