No More Smooth Sailing 

On April 20, 2011, Carnival Corporation ("Carnival") filed suit against BP PLC, Transocean Ltd., and other drilling companies involved in operations on Deepwater Horizon. The cruise line seeks compensation for its economic losses and damages as a result of the April 20, 2010 explosion, fire, and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Barely meeting the deadline to file suit against the rig owners in the multidistrict litigation in La., Carnival alleges claims for negligence, strict liability for manufacturing defect, fraudulent concealment, violation of the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) of 1990, and strict liability pursuant to the Florida Pollutant Discharge Prevention and Control Act. 

Carnival currently has ports in Fla., Ala., Texas, and La., and their ships travel through the Gulf of Mexico daily to transport passengers and crew members to various ports worldwide. According to the complaint, events aboard the Deepwater Horizon oil rig caused environmental contamination of the Gulf of Mexico and its shorelines. Carnival argues that the oil spill and resultant contamination caused it to incur increased fuel costs and additional vessel cleaning costs, as well as significant loss of revenue and bookings.