MIAMI -- Three cruise ships that were supposed to house hurricane evacuees are costing millions of dollars, though they are sitting half-occupied. Now, politicians are asking hard questions about the hastily made deal.

The deal was made between the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Carnival Cruise Lines.

In a statement on its Web site, Carnival Cruise Lines said that the company "chartered three of its cruise ships (the Ecstasy, Sensation and Holiday) to the Military Sealift Command on behalf of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for six months as part of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts."

The deal promises Carnival $192 million for the use of the ships through February. It also agrees to reimburse Carnival $44 million for fuel and other costs.

Politicians in both parties are criticizing the cost of the deal and the haste with which it was drawn up. Even though the ships have capacity for more than 7,000, they are now anchored in the Mississippi River and Mobile Bay with half that number on board.

Even at capacity, the amount being paid for each evacuee is more than twice as much per week as the cost of a regular cruise would be. One senator calculated that even if the ships were filled to capacity with 7,116 evacuees, the price per person would be $1,275 a week for six months. A seven-day Caribbean cruise out of Galveston, Texas costs $599 per person.

Republican Representative Marilyn Musgrave from Colorado said she plans to order a congressional investigation into the deal. Democratic U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman from California is requesting a copy of Carnival's contract and documentation supporting its cost from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.

According to Carnival cruises, about 100,000 passengers had their vacations canceled in order to accommodate the government's agreement.