Carnival ship housing Katrina evacuees breaks loose from pier in New Orleans

Carnival's Ecstasy, still housing New Orleans city and emergency personnel after Hurricane Katrina, broke loose Saturday morning from the Poland Avenue Pier. After a tense several minutes, Ecstasy avoided any collisions as it was pushed around by the mighty Mississippi prior to being brought under control.

The nearly mile-long unscheduled cruise started when a bollard on the pier, one of the huge and theoretically unbreakable posts to which ships are tied, gave way. This started a chain reaction of broken lines, leading the ship to take off stern-first downriver. Quick action by the ship's crew to power up the bow thrusters, and by alert river pilots and tug boats, averted collisions (narrowly) and injuries.

Imagine the surprise of the sleeping passengers, thinking they're tied up safely at the pier, to be roused by the emergency signal and announcement to gather by the lifeboats.

After a major renovation following the end of its FEMA duties, the Ecstasy is scheduled to resume Galveston cruises on April 8.

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Cruise ship housing evacuees breaks loose