Carnival Fire

[Cruising89143]

About 5 years ago we were on a Carnival ship that had an explosion in the incinerator affecting our balcony cabin and 8 other cabins. We could not sleep in our cabin because of smoke, this happened the first night of a 7 night cruise. After many phone calls and much begging guest relations gave us a key to an inside cabin to sleep in.We could not use our balcony room, our clothes all needed cleaning, the smoke smell was overpowering. Some of the people affected were forced to sleep on couches in the atrium. Our throats were raw with bad coughs. After much negotiating from all of the people affected we were give onboard credit of $200.Many letters were written requesting a refund of the difference between our balcony room and an inside room and reimbursement for dry cleaning,at no time did any of us request more than that, all denied.The last letter we all received from Carnival said "you received $200. shipboard credit, this is the last discussion you will receive from us." Please don't tell any of us about how much better Carnival is in customer service and reimbursement.

I am very happy to see that the people on this ship are getting a better deal.

 

I think that Carnival learned their lesson with the Swine Flu incident. They received a lot of bad press on the way that they handled that situation.

 

It will be interesting to hear the comments of those that have been on board and I'm sure that Carnival did everything humanly possible to make the guests on board as comfortable as possible. I just hope that no one comes to the CC Carnival board with any negative stories to tell. I can already see that the Carnival cheerleaders are getting ready to pounce over there. It won't be pretty.:)

[Chigirlcruzin]

I think that Carnival learned their lesson with the Swine Flu incident. They received a lot of bad press on the way that they handled that situation.

 

It will be interesting to hear the comments of those that have been on board and I'm sure that Carnival did everything humanly possible to make the guests on board as comfortable as possible. I just hope that no one comes to the CC Carnival board with any negative stories to tell. I can already see that the Carnival cheerleaders are getting ready to pounce over there. It won't be pretty.:)

 

 

This situation is not entirely unprecedented. In 1995, I was 4 days out from my scheduled cruise on the Celebration when it caught fire (electrical). That ship was also without power, though because it was in the Caribbean, the passengers weren't drifting for as many days. Carnival offered the same compensation to the pax in 1995 as they are offering the Splendor pax. I ended up on the Imagination a week later, and I sailed on the Celebration in March of 96 with 20 sorority sisters!

 

And yes, you can see the pom poms waving already. Some posters are already looking down on pax that may not be as "well traveled.":rolleyes: From what we know, Carnival handled the situation well, but people have a right to vent. I'm sure we'll get our fair share of people that think this is the worst thing that could have possibly happened to anyone ever, those that felt like it was an amazing adventure, and those that are in the middle - just trying to make the best of a bad situation.

[Cruzaholic41]

I can already see that the Carnival cheerleaders are getting ready to pounce over there. It won't be pretty.:)

 

It's pretty sad. Some of the regulars over there have already turned it in to a RCI vs. CCL thing. It doesn't even make sense. :rolleyes:

[KKB]

and we agreed it would be an adventure! Something to talk about for years to come. (hey, free drinks wouldn't hurt;))

I guess it is just like when 2 different people on the same cruise have 2 entirely different views--

IT'S ALL ABOUT ATTITUDE!

It's not like Carnival MEANT for this to happen; it did; it is a BLESSING that no one was hurt. It was simply unfortunate & an inconvenience.

Thankful everyone is alive, well & back safe on land.

[joetrizeo]

a different live feed.

changed

[mjldvlks]

I may be way off base here because I admittedly do not know a whole lot about Carnival Corp. But from what I've seen and read, including their saving money by only expanding on existing ship designs, I totally believe the propulsion system is a cost cutting effort.

 

As for the "real sailor" thing....well, that's a crap answer. Azipod propulsion makes the ship considerably more maneuverable. It's like a driver saying "real drivers" don't need power steering.

 

I assume it was primarily about cost. I was just posting what the reviewer said the Captain said. Additionally, I read somewhere that azipods did have a lot of problems some years ago. But recently, every Cpt. I have heard discussing azipods [on video or in person] loves them and takes every opportunity to brag about what the ship can do because it has azipods. A couple of weeks ago, the Cpt. of the Jewel was bragging about how Azipods enabled him to move straight back at full power, making about 15 knots [slower because of the shape of the stern]. I think he said [or I heard somewhere else say] that pod ships can do a couple of knots sideways. That same cruise, we watched a Carnival ship leave St John, N.B. with assistance from a tug. A few minutes later, the Jewel breezed out under her own power. Asked about it during his talk, the Cpt. of the Jewel tried to make excuses for the Carnival ship, saying that currents in St John could change quickly and were tricky He also said they might have had some sort of power problem. I think it had to do with lack of pod propulsion. I also wonder if pods could have prevented the collision with the RCCL ship a few months ago.

 

Anyway sorry to be OT -- I love the technical stuff.

[Cruising89143]

This situation is not entirely unprecedented. In 1995, I was 4 days out from my scheduled cruise on the Celebration when it caught fire (electrical). That ship was also without power, though because it was in the Caribbean, the passengers weren't drifting for as many days. Carnival offered the same compensation to the pax in 1995 as they are offering the Splendor pax. I ended up on the Imagination a week later, and I sailed on the Celebration in March of 96 with 20 sorority sisters!

 

And yes, you can see the pom poms waving already. Some posters are already looking down on pax that may not be as "well traveled.":rolleyes: From what we know, Carnival handled the situation well, but people have a right to vent. I'm sure we'll get our fair share of people that think this is the worst thing that could have possibly happened to anyone ever, those that felt like it was an amazing adventure, and those that are in the middle - just trying to make the best of a bad situation.

 

I remember the Celebration catching fire. We left a day later on the Sensation headed for a seven night western cruise. The first night at dinner our waiter told us about the Celebration and there was even talk of us changing course to go and get the passengers. Of course this did not happen.

 

It's pretty sad. Some of the regulars over there have already turned it in to a RCI vs. CCL thing. It doesn't even make sense. :rolleyes:

 

 

I saw that.

[Cruising89143]

and we agreed it would be an adventure! Something to talk about for years to come. (hey, free drinks wouldn't hurt;))

I guess it is just like when 2 different people on the same cruise have 2 entirely different views--

IT'S ALL ABOUT ATTITUDE!

It's not like Carnival MEANT for this to happen; it did; it is a BLESSING that no one was hurt. It was simply unfortunate & an inconvenience.

Thankful everyone is alive, well & back safe on land.

 

Not sure about you but I like my drinks cold. No ice on the ship means you either drink them hot or not at all. I would pass. Also, no A/C below would be hot enough in the balcony cabins but the ones booked in a standard inside or ocean view would be VERY HOT. I just don't understand all the people over on the Carnival board asking where to sign up for this cruise. :rolleyes:

[reallyitsmema]

I assume it was primarily about cost. I was just posting what the reviewer said the Captain said. Additionally, I read somewhere that azipods did have a lot of problems some years ago. But recently, every Cpt. I have heard discussing azipods [on video or in person] loves them and takes every opportunity to brag about what the ship can do because it has azipods. A couple of weeks ago, the Cpt. of the Jewel was bragging about how Azipods enabled him to move straight back at full power, making about 15 knots [slower because of the shape of the stern]. I think he said [or I heard somewhere else say] that pod ships can do a couple of knots sideways. That same cruise, we watched a Carnival ship leave St John, N.B. with assistance from a tug. A few minutes later, the Jewel breezed out under her own power. Asked about it during his talk, the Cpt. of the Jewel tried to make excuses for the Carnival ship, saying that currents in St John could change quickly and were tricky He also said they might have had some sort of power problem. I think it had to do with lack of pod propulsion. I also wonder if pods could have prevented the collision with the RCCL ship a few months ago.

 

Anyway sorry to be OT -- I love the technical stuff.

Are you talking about the Caribbean Princess that did the pivot beside the Carnival ship? We were surprised it had a tug behind it too. We didn't go to the Captain's talk so missed his explanation. Was neat to watch though.:)

[jmf123]

Hope they decorate the buses coming up the 5 and 405.......I SURVIVED THE BIGGEST CARNIVAL DISASTER!!

 

Two girls from Kansas are in town selling t-shirts like that! Btw, local news reported that passengers on the lowest decks were disembarked first...very nice move to allow them out before others. And apparently with only one elevator operating...imagine the 'human elevators' that transported all of the (cold) food and drink up the stairs?! The boxes went hand over hand on the stairwells to get to the upper decks. Bravo to the crew and to the passengers that handled the situation graciously.

[mjldvlks]

Are you talking about the Caribbean Princess that did the pivot beside the Carnival ship? We were surprised it had a tug behind it too. We didn't go to the Captain's talk so missed his explanation. Was neat to watch though.:)

Hi, how are you?

 

Honestly, I thought the question referred to the Carnival ship. I really wasn't paying much attention when watching the ships depart.

 

Dennis

[reallyitsmema]

Hi, how are you?

 

Honestly, I thought the question referred to the Carnival ship. I really wasn't paying much attention when watching the ships depart.

 

Dennis

Doing great thanks. I have seen some of the beautiful pictures you have posted from the Jewel cruise.

 

We had an aft balcony so we were watching and enjoying a few drinks before we sailed from St John. The two ships really got close. We didn't stay for the Carnival ship leaving as we had dinner reservations so maybe that one used a tug too.

 

I can't imagine what these people on the Splendor have experienced in the last few days. Will be interesting to see all the stories.

 

Elaine

[AnDeNo.UK]

This is the latest news showing here in the UK. :eek:

 

http://news.uk.msn.com/world/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=155226308

[dutchess43]

Imagine how a hot shower is going to feel the minute they can take one?

[Cruising89143]

Some news stories.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/11/11/cruise.ship/index.html?hpt=C1

 

http://video.foxnews.com/v/4414994/passenger-details-life-aboard-crippled-cruise-ship/?playlist_id=86856

[NordicPrince]

Two girls from Kansas are in town selling t-shirts like that!

 

Here's the online report:

 

Lissa Letts of Overland, Kan., said she drove to San Diego to meet the returning ship to sell passengers T-shirts emblazoned with the phrase: "I survived the 2010 Carnival cruise Spamcation." Passengers snapped up the shirts at $20 apiece.

 

I think she'll cover her gas costs.

[jerin]

That same cruise, we watched a Carnival ship leave St John, N.B. with assistance from a tug. A few minutes later, the Jewel breezed out under her own power.

What was the relationship of where the ships docked? When we were in St. John a couple of summers ago, we (Grandeur of the Seas) were at the pier along Water street, and the Carnival ship (Liberty, IIRC) was at the pier at Long Wharf, further up in the harbor, and turned 90 degrees to the way the river flows further down.

 

It seemed to me that though they had the easier spot to get to things in town (by a couple of blocks), it was a lot easier for us to pull in and out, without having to make that turn and get up into that bend in the river. Liberty's lack of azipods might have accounted for part of the need for tugs, but part of it would seem to be positioning at that port, too.

[Texas Teen]

I'm glad to see the passengers & crew disembarked the ship! Must not have been fun. I don't see how anyone could've wanted to trade places with someone onboard! No decent food to eat, room temperature drinks, taking cold showers, not being able to see in your cabin, the terrible smell, not being connected to the outside world (no working cell tower), etc...

 

On a side note: During this past week of watching and reading all the news about the Splendor on the Carnival Forum, I haven't payed attention to Allure's arrival in the US! I forgot about it until I got on CC's homepage at school today to see if the Splendor had arrived.

[crusinmama06]

Two arrested upon disembarkation...

http://www.comcast.net/news/newswrap/6469284/twoarrestedafterpowerlesscruiseshiparrives/

 

Wonder what that's all about? Anyone find any other news about this?

[cruisinaz]

Two arrested upon disembarkation...

http://www.comcast.net/news/newswrap/6469284/twoarrestedafterpowerlesscruiseshiparrives/

 

Wonder what that's all about? Anyone find any other news about this?

 

I got this when I searched -

 

There were two individuals escorted off the vessel by law enforcement authorities,” the cruise line said in a statement. “While we are not in a position to comment on any specifics, we can state that the reason they were removed from the ship does not relate in any way to anything that occurred during the cruise.”

 

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2010/11/12/2-arrested-after-carnival-splendor-docks-in-san-diego/

[tanstaafl_2001]

I heard it was something about an existing warrant, and a routine customs check turned them up.

 

Two arrested upon disembarkation...

http://www.comcast.net/news/newswrap/6469284/twoarrestedafterpowerlesscruiseshiparrives/

 

Wonder what that's all about? Anyone find any other news about this?

[crusinmama06]

I got this when I searched -

 

There were two individuals escorted off the vessel by law enforcement authorities,” the cruise line said in a statement. “While we are not in a position to comment on any specifics, we can state that the reason they were removed from the ship does not relate in any way to anything that occurred during the cruise.”

 

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2010/11/12/2-arrested-after-carnival-splendor-docks-in-san-diego/

 

I heard it was something about an existing warrant, and a routine customs check turned them up.

 

That makes sense tanstaafl_2001. Thanks!

[Rancher Dave]

I heard it was something about an existing warrant, and a routine customs check turned them up.

 

With more review of who is traveling it may be easier for law enforcement to snag those with outstanding warrants. It is nice to see those with warrants arrested...just hope it is not for violent crimes as those are not who we need on cruises with us.

[MrPete]

A good read of the events on board from the cruise director can be found here:

 

http://www.johnhealdsblog.com

 

Three installments so far called "Smoke on the Water"

[mpbmark]

Just an update on the arrests from the local San Diego paper (who missed the original story).

 

3 people were taken off the ship. One man was released when it was determined he was not the suspect on a felony drug traffic warrant out of Los Angeles. A second man was also released as he did not appear to be in violation of a restraining order.

 

The women was booked on a felony larceny warrant issued in Nevada.:eek: