Passengers aboard Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas sat aboard the ship off the coast of Lahaina today for four hours waiting for the state's Department of Land and Natural Resources to get in place to allow the ship's tenders to land passengers on Maui, according to an article in the Honolulu Advertiser.
The ship arrived at 7am, but the first tenders were not allowed to depart for shore until after 11:15am. The state blames it on a staffing shortage of experienced employees to screen arriving passengers.
Unfortunately, the delay scuttled the excursion plans for many of the passengers, costing the local economy mega bucks.
Radiance of the Seas left Los Angeles October 21 on a 14-day itinerary. This is the second disappointment for the passengers. The Hilo call had to be canceled due to sea conditions, so the ship had returned to Oahu for a second call in Honolulu replace Hilo.
updated Oct 30 2007 1:18pm
