A wild scene unfolded in Miami earlier this week when a massive brawl erupted between two families right after they disembarked from a Carnival cruise.
The chaos kicked off on Monday, June 22, as the guests stepped off the ship and into the debarkation area of the port, which is under the oversight of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. A spokesperson for the cruise line shared insights with PEOPLE magazine about the dramatic altercation.
The Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office (MDSO) quickly responded to the family feud, clarifying that “the incident was deemed a mutual combatant incident.” In a statement provided to PEOPLE, the MDSO added, “It was documented, though none of the parties wanted to press charges against each other.”
Video footage from the scene reveals a chaotic gathering of cruisers shouting at each other while waiting in line with their luggage. Things took a turn for the worse when a woman in a black dress suddenly lunged at another passenger dressed entirely in pink. The situation escalated as the two women exchanged furious punches, prompting a man in a navy blue shirt to intervene by pushing the woman in pink, while a cruiser in a yellow dress joined the fray.
Bystanders looked on in disbelief as police officers rushed in to separate the fighting parties, struggling to pull them apart amid the frenzy.
Carnival confirmed that the melee involved guests who had just disembarked from the Carnival Conquest. According to CruiseMapper, the ship had set sail from Miami on Friday, June 19, making a stop at Celebration Key, Carnival’s private island in the Bahamas, on June 21, before returning to Miami on June 22.