Carnival Cruise Line confirmed that "a large family group" was removed from its Carnival Legend liner (seen above in May 2017) over "disruptive and violent acts" they were involved with on Friday morning.  (Reuters)

Around two dozen Carnival Cruise Line passengers were removed from the Carnival Legend on Friday following a violent brawl that one onlooker described as a “bloodbath.”

The Carnival Legend was scheduled to dock in Melbourne on Saturday following a 10-day trip through the South Pacific, but was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Eden, New South Wales, where police unloaded the unruly passengers, 9 News Australia is reporting.

Witnesses say the fight broke out very early on Friday morning between a large extended family, guests and staff members, and grew to the point where fellow passengers were “truly scared for [their] safety.”

WARNING: Video contains graphic content and language.

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Footage from the ship shows several passengers punching, kicking and wresting each other to the floor, while security officers attempt to break up the melee. Some of the officers are also seen kicking and fighting with the passengers themselves.

At one point in the footage, a female staff member is seen trying to swat at the person filming the fight, presumably in an attempt to stop him/her from filming.

Travelers aboard the Carnival Legend said some of the unruly passengers had been “looking for trouble from the minute they got on the ship,” according to a witness who spoke with Melbourne’s 3AW Radio.

“They were looking for trouble from the minute they got on the ship."

- A Carnival Legend passenger who spoke with 3AW

“My husband said to take [their behavior] away, because there’s kids here, and five of them surrounded my husband … They told us to watch our backs,” the woman added, per 9 News.

Other passengers recalled that a few of the brawlers had been involved in previously