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Cruise Ship Safety....if you cruise...do you feel safe?


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#1 WreckWench

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Posted 17 January 2012 - 04:14 PM

As a travel professional I am in the loop on all kinds of travel even though we choose to specialize in 'Dive Travel'.

However the cruise industry is very shaken by the recent sinking of the Costa and many cruisers are now wondering just how safe 'cruising' is.

If you are a cruiser do you think this was a blip or do you think all cruise ships have inherent safety issues we are not aware of?

If you have not taken a cruise but have been thinking about it does this accident scare you off from the idea?

I saw this ship when we were on a cruise last Oct. In fact I think I have a picture of it next to our ship which was almost twice as large.

I know the article said they had not had a safety briefing but it is hard to believe. I've done several cruises and ALL do the safety drill and muster station within 2 hrs or so of boarding the boat. And they are SERIOUS about them. You can't sit...even on the ground but rather stand and stand in the place you are expected to come to in the event of an emergency or abandon ship.

So I think this was a blip...what do you all think?

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#2 Greg@ihpil

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Posted 17 January 2012 - 04:43 PM

As I mentioned in the original post of this accident. I have been on 3 Cruises. One on a small (800) guests Greek ship toured the Hondouras area and 2 on Carnival (2k+) guests.Before we left port,we had our safety meeting.I think its only fair to say "It only takes one,to spoil the lot".I would still go on a cruise in a flash.Its a great way to discover new destinations. I do think the sizes of the ships are getting to large to handle such events that just took place.Even if the procedures are in place.The shear volume of people makes it harder to control & adds to the chaos.Thats my .02..


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#3 sharkCrazy

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Posted 17 January 2012 - 06:20 PM

As long as the captian's name isnt Francesco Schettino

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Edited by sharkCrazy, 17 January 2012 - 06:22 PM.

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#4 Landlocked Dive Nut

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Posted 17 January 2012 - 07:18 PM

I sincerely doubt that Captain Schettino will ever get another command. He doesn't deserve one, IMHO.

I have never cruised, as being stuck on a boat with thousands of other people does not appeal to me. BUT, I would not hesitate to go on one if the mood struck. It's no more dangerous than any other mode of transportation!
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#5 lv2dive70

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Posted 17 January 2012 - 08:48 PM

Blip
How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean. -- Arthur C. Clarke

#6 georoc01

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Posted 17 January 2012 - 10:12 PM

I'm fine with the Safety. I feel more comfortable on a cruise ship than on most of the small planes that you need to fly to get to some of these islands.

My only issue with cruising is the size of the megaships nowadays and my tolerance for the crowds that exist on a boat of 4,000 people.

#7 shadragon

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Posted 18 January 2012 - 07:02 AM

The Veendam is an eleven deck cruise ship that visits us on occasion. Take a look at the photos in the link and you will see just how high that ship is. This is done to pack as many people into the ship as possible. I assisted in a mapping survey of the bottom of the harbor where she berths and the average depth of water there is 26'. So like an inverse iceberg the vast majority of her superstructure is well above the water line.

I am sure that many potential accidents are avoided daily by professional and responsible cruise line crews. However, as cruising became more popular after 9/11 and the companies invested billions in new hulls, it was only a matter of time before the professional and responsible officers started to get thin on the ground and the barrel had to be scraped a little lower to crew the new ships.

This is not the first time a Captain and crew have deserted passengers in distress. Read about the MTS Oceanos story off the tip of South Africa in 1991.

My idea of a cruise is a boat with 20 or so fellow divers, a NITROX generator, rows of available tanks and 5 dives a day.



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#8 Guest_PlatypusMan_*

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Posted 18 January 2012 - 09:49 AM

Blip


We see your blip, and raise you a glurg.

Glurgs are still available in a ship's casino, right?

#9 WreckWench

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Posted 18 January 2012 - 10:01 AM

Blip


We see your blip, and raise you a glurg.

Glurgs are still available in a ship's casino, right?



John I've said it before...you just ain't right! :lmao:

Contact me directly at Kamala@SingleDivers.com for your private or group travel needs or 864-557-6079 AND don't miss SD's 2018-2021 Trips! ....here! Most are once in a lifetime opportunities...don't miss the chance to go!!
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#10 peterbj7

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Posted 18 January 2012 - 12:03 PM

Doesn't attract me at all. The biggest ship I've been on was the public ferry from Vancouver BC to Anchorage. Ships I've been on in Greece, and diving liveaboards, have all been smaller than that. Though thinking about it some of the cross-Channel ferries between England and France are/used to be pretty big, and I went on lots of them. I'm basically averse to large crowds, because when something goes wrong they all behave the same way - mob hysteria rapidly sets in.

I do think the Costs disaster has a greater impact than appears at first sight. Carnival is an enormous company spread around the globe, and it seems (not just from this incident) that they trust to local management with little or no "head office" supervision. The way the Costa was run I think was becoming the norm, not the exception, though fortunately the results were rare enough. People I know who've taken Caribbean cruises out of Miami have, reading between the lines, said much the same thing. If the whole industry, which really means the single company Carnival Cruises and its subsidiaries, DOESN'T get a substantial shakeup and imposition of controls, which will impact their very substantial bottom line, then I think there will be a drifting away by the public.

Edited by peterbj7, 19 January 2012 - 10:26 AM.


#11 rkymtwy

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Posted 18 January 2012 - 03:05 PM

Did you hear the latest, the captain claims he tripped and fell into the lifeboat. It's sad that he has such disregard for those that lost their lives in an accident that he most likely caused.

#12 drdiver

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Posted 03 March 2012 - 08:28 PM

I've always felt very safe on cruise ships. As long as the captain is wearing his glasses...

http://news.yahoo.co...-155158240.html
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#13 Jerrymxz

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Posted 04 March 2012 - 09:16 AM

To answer the question posed, I haven't done a cruise; it cuts into my dive budget. But to a more fundamental issue in this discussion is your own personal safety no matter where you are. Anytime I’m in a new place whether it’s a hotel, a boat, a plane I run a quick “what if”. What am I going to do if… I pay close attention to the safety briefing and I look over the seat back card. Is this a plane with the horse collar life vest or is the seat bottom the floatation. I already know where the closest exit is while I’m walking back the isle to my seat. This same rational applies to anyplace I find myself.

In a cruise ship pick a cabin less than 40 or 50 feet above the water line and as close to the outside as possible. On any ship wreck the people above the water line and closer to the outside have a better chance of escape. Look at the Titanic, thousands in steerage never made it out.

I like second floor hotel rooms. Only one entrance for security but if I have too I can jump or climb down in the event of a fire or other disaster. It all boils down to taking responsibility for my own safety. I’m sorry but if I’m on a boat that has taken a list so bad I have trouble walking. It’s time to step away from the buffet table and well past time to take action.

Each wreck has a tale to tell about its life and its demise. 

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#14 peterbj7

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Posted 04 March 2012 - 10:00 AM

It appeared from reports about the first one and it is certainly true for the second that these ships are woefully designed. They have no effective backup systems for crucial services, like supply of water, pumping away of sewage, powering the kitchens, etc. To use a time-honoured English phrase they are simply "not fir for purpose". Only someone who is blind and dumb or has no concern for personal safety would set foot on one of these things. It's like staying in an hotel or working in an office so far up that a cursory examination will show that there are only limited emergency options and no way of a fire escape reaching. Do it by all means, but be prepared for the consequences and don't complain when they happen.

#15 TexasDiver

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Posted 04 March 2012 - 07:06 PM

[quote]Only someone who is blind and dumb or has no concern for personal safety would set foot on one of these things. It's like staying in an hotel or working in an office so far up that a cursory examination will show that there are only limited emergency options and no way of a fire escape reaching.[quote]

I've taken at least 2 dozen cruises (excluding dive liveaboards) over the years on Cunard, Holland America, Carnival, Azamara, Celebrity, etc. trans-Atlantic, Caribbean, Agean, Mediterranean, Panama Canal, South Atlantic, North Sea, Arctic Ocean, etc. without the slightest worry or problem, with one exception - crossing the Southern Ocean Drake Passage on a 65 passenger shallow draft Antarctica expedition ship. The large cruise ships operating from US ports are far safer than fire trap hotels (as they have in Belize). Like airplane crashes, cruise ship accidents are so rare that every one is big news. Don't fret! Take a cruise!

Edited by TexasDiver, 04 March 2012 - 07:07 PM.





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