Mexico's first cruise line venture has gotten off to a less than trouble-free start. Only days after the inauguration of Ocean Star Cruises, a generator fire caused a power loss that forced the evacuation Saturday of the line's first cruise ship. Almost 560 passengers and crew were taken from the vessel to Huatuilco on Mexico's west coast, reports Latin American Herald Tribune.

The interrupted cruise was only the second to be made for Ocean Star by its sole ship, the nearly 40 year old Ocean Star Pacific. The ship was originally built for Royal Caribbean as the Nordic Prince, but has subsequently had several other owners and names.

"There's no emergency, all the passengers are fine, they are safe," Carlos Salazar, representative of the Acapulco-based cruise line, told Latin American Herald Tribune.

The newspaper reported the ship as being some 18 kilometers from shore, under tow from a vessel owned by Pemex.

April 18, 2010