Fire on Carnival Triumph. No engines, running on emergency generators.

[foxesden1]

Yes, until a six year old slips, falls and dies because they were attempting to tender with no balancing mechanism and no lighting in the open sea.

 

or a drunken adult.

[rphalange]

From ABCNews.com:

 

QUOTE

 

Passengers on the fire-damaged Carnival cruise ship stranded in the Gulf of Mexico have reported worsening conditions including scarce running water, no air conditioning and long lines for food.

 

Carnival said original plans to haul the crippled ship to Progreso, Mexico, have been scrapped because the ship has drifted about 90 miles north because of strong currents. Instead, the Triumph will be towed to Mobile, Ala., and should arrive Thursday.

 

For the more than 4,200 people on board, Thursday could not come soon enough.

 

"Conditions are getting worse by the hour," passenger Debra Rightmire told ABC News in a text message. "Cabin carpets are wet with urine and water. Toilets are overflowing inside cabins. We are having to sleep in the hallways. Onion and cucumber sandwich last night," she added.

 

The Carnival Triumph is now little more than a 100,000-ton cork, bobbing in the Gulf of Mexico without propulsion since the fire broke out Sunday morning. No one was hurt in the fire, but the ship lost power and is relying on a back-up generator.

 

Brent Nutt said that his wife, Bethany, who is on board, called him to say the plumbing wasn't working on the ship."She said there's no running water. They just really got food there to them tonight, and there's no power whatsoever, other than the emergency flasher lights that are on," he said Monday. "She was crying and hysterical."

 

At one point Sunday, passengers were reportedly using buckets to relieve themselves.

 

END QUOTE

 

That last line about buckets is just plain scary. I want to wish each and every passenger on board the best, and hope and pray they make it back to Mobile with no injuries or illness.

 

I hereby predict Carnival will make some crazy offer to each passenger on the Triumph like 25% off another cruise and some chocolate covered strawberries. And that some folks on this board will say the fire was NOT Carnival's fault.

 

We are praying for the passengers and crew. I cannot imagine how disgusting that ship is by now...

 

Here's another article I just read

http://gma.yahoo.com/passengers-text-dire-conditions-cruise-ship-081005868--abc-news-topstories.html

[ducklite]

you know a way to get a ship to them faster than they can be towed to land?

 

High speed ferry would have been a plausible option. There are a number of them based about 3.5 hours away from where the ship is in the Key West area. They could have transported every passenger to dry land in the US by the end of the day today had the started yesterday morning.

 

Helicopter would have been another plausible option. Smaller loads but fast moving.

 

Bottom line, if Carnival wanted to, and was actually living up to the statement that they are doing everything possible, they'd actually be doing so.

[txponycruiser]

Does anyone actually read the official Carnival statements or do you just make it up?

 

Carnival has already stated that everyone on this cruise gets a full refund (minus gift shop and casino) and a credit for another cruise. I think that's excellent (granted, I do not want to be in the situation that warrants that). They've said they are going to fly folks back to Houston. I'm sure those who don't need to travel to Houston but another airport will be accomodated. Yes, I bet buses will be used between Houston and Galveston. They are towing to Mobile because the ship drifted....anyone know how long the anchor chain is? I bet it isn't long enough to anchor the ship in the Gulf. Thank GOD it drifted north and not south!! At least they are closer to the US. And another blessing this happened in February and not during hurricane season.

 

Why all the negativity? Stuff happens. Yes, these ships are run hard. Something is eventually going to break. Yes, I WILL be on the Triumph in June IF she's back in service. If she's not, I'm sure Carnival will be accomodating to get me and my family on another ship. I'm not worried about it.

 

Stop speculating and wait for these people to get back to tell us their story.

[sjn911]

I am worried about the amount of time to get to Mobile versus some other way to get these people off the ship sooner. I do not know enough to know what way is or would be better..but it just seems that off the ship the quickest way is best.

 

I am operating from fact my mom died 33 days after getting off a ship of a rare virus that attacked her heart this summer. Now, people go through immune system strengths and weaknesses all their lives....and nothing is clearly to bless and or blame on where and how she got this virus...everyone assured us it was just bad luck and none of us think she got it from the ship or related travel per se..anywhere too strong of a dose of it and a weaker immune system from other fought and won infections earlier in previous year..we just do not know. I just worry about this being the only best way to get these people away from the sanitation issues,,,so many people...a small city of people this is just not comparable to any considerablly smaller number of people on a vessel (like the 400 passenger and 100 crew people ships)....and managing getting them to each step of less risk. Sanitation is a big big growing risk for lives i would think.

[rjackieb]

I travel internationally (not just to the Caribbean on a cruise ship) so I need a passport. I firmly believe that not having one on your person as you leave the continental US is foolish. You never know when you might unexpectedly need it. I take mine even when I fly to Puerto Rico on business, just in case we have engine trouble and have to land on a non-US Caribbean island. I'd rather be safe than sorry, and the cost is minimal.

The hubby thought I was nuts but I even packed them for our driving trip to Las Vegas last year. I told him the passports are always tucked safely away, but our driver's licenses aren't as secure. IF we were robbed of all other identification, I figured having passports along would help, and if they didn't, it sure wasn't hurting anything to bring them.

[srlafleur]

I'm not so sure it has anything to do with helping people without passports. I don't think CCL gives a crap about them or any delay they might face. Instead they are saving a ton of money by not having to charter planes for international flights.

 

The ship would had to have been towed to a port with repair facilities, so might as well kill two birds with one stone. It's purely a financial decision.

 

By the way, I suspect that anyone needing to return to Galveston rather than going directly home from Mobile is going to be put on a bus for the eight hour ride as opposed to flown on a charter plane. Of course CCL doesn't want to tell anyone that yet due to the uproar it's likely to cause.

 

I also suspect that because the Mobile airport is very small with limited flights, the majority of passengers to fly directly home rather than return to Galveston will be bused to New Orleans and Atlanta.

 

And you know all this, how?

[TerReuv]

This goes to show Carnival is cheaper but things like this could be avoided if they charge more they could afford to do maintenance on their ships. This ship has had other fires in the last year. When your pricing cruises and decide to go with Carnival remember cheaper is not always better you get what you pay for. Some other cruise lines are more then carnival but there are reasons for that and they probably dont corners when it comes to ship maintenance. This just turned 4000 people's vacation into a complete nightmare.

 

Seriously? Quite a big assumption there don't you think? When did the Triumph have another fire? Unless you have proof of any of this, it is really only your opinion. Glad you took the time to make this your first post.:rolleyes:

[reallyitsmema]

High speed ferry would have been a plausible option. There are a number of them based about 3.5 hours away from where the ship is in the Key West area. They could have transported every passenger to dry land in the US by the end of the day today had the started yesterday morning.

 

Helicopter would have been another plausible option. Smaller loads but fast moving.

 

Bottom line, if Carnival wanted to, and was actually living up to the statement that they are doing everything possible, they'd actually be doing so.

The ship is not sinking so there is no need to take drastic measures. How do you think they are going to transfer over 3,000 passengers to a high speed ferry if they are drifting? They do not have the ability to stabilize the ship inorder to load a ferry. Helicopter would be even worse.

[MrPete]

Perhaps its time to start equipping these ships with solar panels?

 

Besides environmental reasons.....backup power for emergencies.

 

Um, there's no roof on a cruise ship.

[rphalange]

The ship is not sinking so there is no need to take drastic measures. How do you think they are going to transfer over 3,000 passengers to a high speed ferry if they are drifting? They do not have the ability to stabilize the ship inorder to load a ferry. Helicopter would be even worse.

 

I agree with you there. The ship, however disgusting and unsanitary, is the safest option to get them back to land.

[txponycruiser]

The only alternative I see to getting passengers off this ship faster is to get the Navy involved. That said I doubt even a Navy vessel can accomodate an additional 4,000 people. I am sure that Carnival and the Coast Guard are working together and doing the best that they can with the resources they have. I work in emergency management and if you don't have the resource, you can't use it, no matter how good of an idea it is.

[jonbgd]

According to the program, they will all get three extra days credit. I suppose this is one of the lowest issues on their minds. In the last year and a half, I have lost power in my home three times about 5 days each. It was awful. Can't imagine doing the same in those conditions.

We lost power for a day and a half on Christmas day. It was tough enough on the 2 of us.

5 days would have been really rough

I couldnt imagine it happening on a cruise ship with 4000 other people.

Besides our plumbing still worked

[sjn911]

According to the program, they will all get three extra days credit. I suppose this is one of the lowest issues on their minds. In the last year and a half, I have lost power in my home three times about 5 days each. It was awful. Can't imagine doing the same in those conditions.

PLUS ONE...so agree.

Happened to me many times growing up..even prepared in a ranching situation...it is awful, awful, awful..you are so right... just the fear of the fire like you said before and now all this time to get to next step of off the ship..not at all imaginable.

 

2 weeks has been my longest at below freezing...outside...

[MrPete]

My son is an employee on the Triumph. He is 23 years old. I have not heard from him since I read about the fire. All I read about is the passengers but nothing about how the crew is doing. I am scared for him. If what I am reading about the conditions for the passengers are true I can only imagine how it must be for the crew members.

 

Makes me wonder where they're allowing the crew to sleep.

[srlafleur]

From ABCNews.com:

 

I hereby predict Carnival will make some crazy offer to each passenger on the Triumph like 25% off another cruise and some chocolate covered strawberries. And that some folks on this board will say the fire was NOT Carnival's fault.

 

 

One of the first things that was released was that all passengers will be refunded the cost of their cruise and transportation, including all expenses incurred onboard (excluding gift shop and casino) AND will be given a future cruise credit equal to what they paid for this cruise.

[rs38]

I clicked on this thread to see what the latest status was of the ship and passengers/crew. Now I can't quit reading the updates......it is very entertaining. The drama is amazing: Food hoarding, solar panels, passports, Coast Guard boarding, sewage running down the walls, ship drifting, etc.... I am sure when the ship is safely at port, the news media will find the most outrageous interview to broadcast over the air.

 

This is a bad event, and a lot of people are miserable. It will be good to get everyone home, and back to normal.

 

In the mean time, I will continue to read this thread.....it just doesn't get much better than this.

 

Amen. With all the opinions, beliefs, and assumptions expressed on here (right and wrong), you can easily see how things would get bad quickly on a cruise ship stranded at sea. Add the stress of that situation and you've got a real mess. I think I need to watch more Doomsday Preppers episodes before my next cruise to prepare for the worst.

[wegiekat]

In the next few days people are going to be dying on that ship, especially those with ill health when the ship departed. If Carnival lengthened the time this floating jail remains at sea they should face criminal charges.

 

I was going to say something but I thought better of it. Sheesh:rolleyes:

[RazorbackBelle08]

Makes me wonder where they're allowing the crew to sleep.

 

This. I think some people have forgotten how bad it must be for the crew, as well. And as far as safety goes, I really don't think the passengers are that safe on the ship just because of the sanitary conditions. E.coli and Norovirus are just two of many diseases that can and do easily spread in a situation like that. That's where my concern would be.

 

I knew I liked folks from Arkansas for a reason, and not just because my bmom lives there, but that yalls can use common sense and logic. (Be careful who you let see you use it though, there seem to be many, many people envious of those traits.)

Also, I have really enjoyed reading the posts from MarkBearSF and MissMeggieMurphy too. I can appreciate all the people who understand real tragedy and can still be glass-half-full about it.

 

P.S. Woo Pig Soooooooie :D

 

Woo Pig! :D

[kireelady]

The Triumph situation was just on The View Hot Topics. They said that there were reports of people acting like savages (their words not mine) and getting ugly with each other. They also mentioned the lack of working toilets and other poor conditions.

 

Interesting that they included it in Hot Topics today.

[cruiseflyer38]

For all the folks who "will never sail Carnival again" or who have never sailed Carnival before and think this proves why they shouldn't:

 

What do you think YOUR preferred cruise line would do differently given the same circumstance? (IMHO, you're pretty much smoking crack if you think it couldn't happen on any line but CCL - and, no I'm not a cheerleader. I've cruised other lines more often than I have CCL)

Perhaps they would not leave port with an inopoerable engine as reported.

[RuthlessBoss]

The current reports are that they're being towed at less than 10 knots per hour and won't reach Mobile until Thursday at best. Yeah, I think getting a ship to them and getting them out of there would definitely have been faster, safer, and much more comfortable for them though at this point it's probably moot. I don't think this has been handled well by Carnival. Again, that's just my opinion, though, and results may vary by user :D

 

 

 

Passengers on board are reporting that alcohol service has been suspended. Without booze I think I'd be even unhappier in that situation!

I don't think there are spare ships fully staffed sitting on a standby basis. In theory, it sounds logical.

[ducklite]

The hubby thought I was nuts but I even packed them for our driving trip to Las Vegas last year. I told him the passports are always tucked safely away, but our driver's licenses aren't as secure. IF we were robbed of all other identification, I figured having passports along would help, and if they didn't, it sure wasn't hurting anything to bring them.

 

I don't take mine for a trip where I am not planning on leaving the continental US. I only once wished I had, I ended up in Buffalo on business and realized an old friend was playing a gig at a bar right across the border that night. :(

[juiceman]

Um, there's no roof on a cruise ship.

 

Allure of the Seas & Oasis of the Seas have thin-film solar panels on them.

 

http://renewableenergycontractors.net/archives/366

 

[Aquahound]

Perhaps its time to start equipping these ships with solar panels?

 

Besides environmental reasons.....backup power for emergencies.

 

Um, there's no roof on a cruise ship.

 

Hey Pete, RCI Oasis Class and Celebrity's Solstice Class are covered with solar panels....top of Viking Crown on Oasis, and top of Solarium on Solstice. They create enough power to light the larger public areas of the ship.

 

Carnival Corp released a statement a few years ago saying they would not install them on any ships under the Carnival umbrella because the return on investment is not yet high enough.