Assistant Harbormaster Gary Tripp was among those to respond Friday after a cruise ship went adrift not far off the Westport shore.

At around 3:15 p.m., a bulletin was issued that the cruise ship Star Pride had lost power in Buzzards Bay. The 376-foot ship carrying 351 passengers and crew had been westbound on a trip from Reykjavik, Iceland, to New York — part of a 17-day cruise.

Although some earlier reports stated that the ship had run aground, Mr. Tripp found that that was not the case, said Chris Leonard, Westport’s director of marine services.

Instead, the ship’s water intake had become clogged, causing the crew to shut the engines down to prevent overheating. They also dropped anchor.

The Coast Guard, which also responded along with harbormaster boats from Westport, Dartmouth and other nearby towns, called the tugboat Jaguar to assist but that would prove unnecessary as the ship’s crew was able to clear the intake and restart the engines.

Mr. Leonard said it is understandable that some feared the ship was aground.

“It was anchored about a mile and a half off Hens and Chickens,” a dangerous reef off Horseneck that has claimed several ships, “and from some vantage points it may have appeared to be on that reef.”

Mr. Tripp stayed until it became apparent that the situation was under control. Local jurisdiction mat actually have belonged to Dartmouth — the ship was quite close to the line between the two towns.

Nobody was hurt and the ship soon resumed its trip, opting to skip a brief visit to Newport due to the loss of time. The ship is operated by Windstar Cruises.