Viking Sky position, adrift off Norway Coast and evacuating Passengers & Crew

[Nunagoras]

Obviously the Industry is being victim of its own quick success at certain time. But that is not an excuse! Nobody wants high risks!... This time it seams that all was relatively well managed. We hope that this can be always the case! Have a nice day!...

[OnTheJourney]

6 hours ago, kathy49 said:

I was amazed at people just sitting in there as ceiling was coming down and things flying...it must have literally been at the very real impact of the storm...a very unsafe place to be and I also remarked on that planter and the sort of lightweight appearing chairs.

 

 

 

Really....shouldn't everyone have been told to return to their rooms and await further word?  I mean, would that not be prudent? Guess there is always the chance then of wind and water crashing through a verandah window, but still...that lounge was probably not the best place to be. It did make for some amazing footage though. What really got me was when one of our passengers asked a crew member to take her cell phone and walk right up to the front of the lounge to get some video. She said she wanted to see how far up and down the horizon went. I get that, being one who likes to capture every facet of a trip on both video and still shots, but I was dumbfounded that the crew member actually did it - not once - but twice - right up against the glass. He gave her the phone back, then returned and took it again to get even more shots. So the situation in there was indeed probably not treated with the respect it deserved in terms of potential danger to the passengers and crew. At least the steps to the upper tier of the lounger was sealed off. 

 

The real fun came with the necessary flight rebookings. I will not go into too much on this but suffice it to say things did not exactly go 'smoothly' and MANY unhappy people. Some didn't even have their flights worked out yet by this morning before we left for the Oslo airport. I didn't use Viking air (for that matter never went with Viking at all before this trip) but having talked to and heard the many disgruntled comments by several different people I feel I'm good sticking to doing my own air. 

Edited March 26, 2019 by gretschwhtfalcon

[chengkp75]

2 hours ago, Pratique said:

Could you please explain the reputational damage some more? Is this a real problem? I am genuinely curious. I would think that public opinion has little to no effect (most people don't even know or care who the captain is, much less his or her reputation), and that those knowledgeable in the profession will see through the noise and recognize the Captain for what he has or hasn't done. In my observations of the world, people get riled up about things and then move on. This Captain will be forgotten soon enough. So I'm not understanding the concern about the extent of the damage being done, or how the pilot's public remarks will make much of a difference in the long run. Thanks in advance for engaging with me on this. I am learning.

 

1 hour ago, Pratique said:

I get that in the general sense, but is this a real problem in the cruise industry? Have other captains been blackballed because of public opinion in social media?

Yes, it is.  The Captain of the Allure was found to be completely vindicated for his decision to sail into the storm off the East coast by following RCI's ISM procedures, and RCI decided to revise their ISM policies, but the Captain was a few months later quietly transferred to another ship.  I think it was a HAL ship that had an incident entering Alexandria a few years back, where the Captain was again vindicated, but ended up retiring due to the poor press from the incident.

[Cruise it or lose it]

5 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

 

Yes, it is.  The Captain of the Allure was found to be completely vindicated for his decision to sail into the storm off the East coast by following RCI's ISM procedures, and RCI decided to revise their ISM policies, but the Captain was a few months later quietly transferred to another ship.  I think it was a HAL ship that had an incident entering Alexandria a few years back, where the Captain was again vindicated, but ended up retiring due to the poor press from the incident.

A sad case of " you're damned if you do.. damned if you don't".

[OnTheJourney]

11 hours ago, lc73 said:

First off, wishing the best to all passengers of this horrific cruise, particularly those few that suffered broken  bones or to anyone suffering from trauma from this event.

 

A few questions for  gretschwhtfalcon  or for anyone else on this cruise who is comfortable talking about the cruise. I get very nervous about cruises and going on the Sky shortly and answers to any of these questions below would be appreciated.

 

About how long was the power off?

Were a lot of people having to sleep on the floors?

Were the restroom functional during this time?  (Could the toilets flush?  Did the restrooms have lights?)

Could one wash their hands in the restrooms after using facilities?

How long did people stay in the muster areas for those not evacuated?  Were they able to return to their cabins?

How long between the alarm to go to muster and either disembarkation or access to the cabins again?

Was food and non-alcoholic drinks available during the time passengers were in the muster area?

 

Thoughts go out to anyone still suffering from this experience. Wish all the passengers and crew the very best.

 

OK....I'll try.... 

 

Power appeared to be off for maybe 10-15 minutes?  It seemed that it went on/off in succession a few times during all that. 

Unevacuated guests did wind up trying to sleep with their life vests on all over the place from what I heard - floors, stairwells, etc. 

Don't know about the restrooms but I'm going to say probably not completely functional. Maybe someone who was on the ship between Saturday through Monday will be able to provide a better answer. 

Muster stations....not sure on that either....my station was moved to the stairwells probably within a half-hour or so and we remained there for 3-4 hours slowly working our way up to Deck 8. 

Don't know about the washing hands in the restrooms. I saw a few restrooms that didn't look to be in the best shape once I got back on the ship yesterday. 

Some people did ask to go back to cabins to get coats or asked crew members to do this for them. We had to turn in our room key cards while on the stairs. They collected all of them. In retrospect, not sure why this was done so soon before everyone actually got closer to Deck 8 and outside. NO idea how it was decided as to who evacuated and who didn't. It seemed completely random. I'm sure the initial intent was to evacuate everyone. 

Once general alarm was sounded - everyone immediately reported to muster stations...as told to in the drill. 

When we were in the stairwells, plates of cookies came around (presumably from World Cafe), as well as bottled water and loads of blankets (it was COLD on those stairs as you got higher up since the Deck 8 exit door was open all the time with people constantly going out to be lifted off). 

Those who stayed on the ship reported getting room service meals -not sure what they consisted off. I believe I'm correct that often it was more of a box / bag lunch sort of thing, since one lady I talked to referred to getting similar to what we got while on the ship yesterday while waiting to get flight info / pack up rooms etc. LONG story on that one too but won't go into that right now. 

 

 

Edited March 26, 2019 by gretschwhtfalcon

[chengkp75]

48 minutes ago, Nunagoras said:

Many thanks @chengkp75 for your contribution.

 

Sadly nowadays the number of those "crew members" on ships whom aren't real crew members are exploding rapidly. Some 10 years ago I would say only the photographers, Casino, entertainment and a few shop assistants would to fall on that category... But now let us to see: The international maritime laws only mandate that all the people involved in satisfying the operation, security and the basic needs of the people inside a ship should be considered Crew Members. All the others can to be external workers on the ship and those afford passenger level benefits and obligations. Seems clear? Not so much! Take for example restaurants: Once all pay for the buffet and the MDR, the basic need is almost considered satisfied on those venues coupled with their near be bars. So now, why not to rent all the other food and beverage areas to "celebrity chefs" and drink trademarks? Once on the RCI's Allure 4 years ago I learnt that all the workers working on the Starbucks coffee shop aboard and most of the ones on the speciality restaurants were subcontracted workers with their partner businesses! Obviously no doubt those individuals might to have very basic, if any, maritime knowledge, to let alone Emergency Rescue activities knowledge! And that trend is spreading on all the mainstream industry!...

 

Supposedly the luxury and lite luxury lines should be more immune to that trend... Or maybe are they just doing it on a more discreet fashion?

 

Something will need to be change in the next years before we have a new Costa Concordia... Fortunately this time all are well and safe now!...

 

Have a nice day!...

While you are correct that many of the concessions onboard are subcontract employees, part of the concession contract between the cruise line and the provider (casino, spa, art, etc) is that their employees will adhere to the Captain's orders, and follow maritime law, and receive basic training, and be assigned safety duties.  My point is that even the employees of the cruise line itself, like cabin stewards and wait staff have very basic safety knowledge, and every crew member has an emergency duty assigned.  Even on US flag cruise ships, the knowledge of the ship by most crew is incredibly limited, and those crew have had to have 40 hours of safety training before they even set foot on the ship.

 

As far as the Concordia goes, the crew, with as little safety knowledge and training as they have, did very well, and were commended by the Italian Maritime Authority, while it was solely the improper actions of the professional mariner, Schettino, that resulted in the deaths.

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, AL3XCruise said:

 

I applaud him for taking that action.  It seems to me that several officials have made statements which include something along the lines of "we will look into the weather conditions and the decisions related to routing through the forecast storm".  Obviously, this will be part of any investigation; it has to be.  Sadly, this has been picked up by pundits as "We are concerned that ship shouldn't have been where it was" or "the Captain proceeded knowingly into bad weather."  

 

I've worked in safety and risk management, so while I don't have the depth of ship specific knowledge several posters do, I do have some understanding of the processes involved.  The Master would have gathered and evaluated information, including the forecast, and compared that information with the established guidelines of the company and other relevant organizations.  If his actions show that he did this properly (and while no one knows for sure, I'm not aware of one any evidence that he failed in this responsibility), then the question becomes do the guidelines need to be reevaluated, not what did the Master do wrong.

 

There may be significant outcomes to the investigation.  New maintenance procedures, weather criteria, ship design requirements, etc. can all reduce the risks for millions of travelers.  The fact that changes could be made does not suggest that anyone was negligent.  Simply put, improving the system used to make decisions going forward is far more important than assigning blame

Very well said. Affirmative, on a modern ships Bridge, risk analysis and human factors are increasingly being factored into the decision making processes. The extent of which is driven by the Owner's Bridge Procedure/Operational Procedures Manual(s).

 

Although I am not privy to Viking's procedures, by leading the industry in many areas, I would expect they have exceptional Bridge procedures similar to the other company's that I know - Princess/P&O/Cunard.

 

I would expect that a component of reviewing the voyage plan prior to departure, will be considering the weather on departure and predicted weather enroute. To review the weather, I would expect the Captain may have received various synsopsis/forecasts, wind projections, wave height projections, weather routing from a professional service, and even the pilots. He would review this with the intended track and the ability of the ship to handle the predicted conditions and any guidance or go/no limits included in the Bridge procedures.

 

However, in accordance with the ISM Code, the Bridge Procedures mostly likely contain a proviso that the Master may make a departure from the procedures to ensure the safety of the vessel, passengers & crew. An example could be a forecast storm that in the Master's professional judgement was of more of a risk, if remaining in port.

 

You are also correct that any recommendations resulting from an investigation do not necessarily mean the incident involved negligence. It simply means the authorities have learned a valuable lesson and have determined alternative procedures could assist in preventing a repeat.

 

Many marine regulations were developed this way. 

[chengkp75]

3 minutes ago, gretschwhtfalcon said:

 

OK....I'll try.... 

 

Power appeared to be off for maybe 10-15 minutes?  It seemed that it went on/off in succession a few times during all that. 

Unevacuated guests did wind up trying to sleep with their life vests on all over the place from what I heard - floors, stairwells, etc. 

Don't know about the restrooms but I'm going to say probably not completely functional. Maybe someone who was on the ship between Saturday through Monday will be able to provide a better answer. 

Muster stations....not sure on that either....my station was moved to the stairwells probably within a half-hour or so and we remained there for 3-4 hours slowly working out way up to Deck 8. 

Don't know about the washing hands in the restrooms.

Some people did ask to go back to cabins to get coats or asked crew members to do this for them. We had to turn in our room key cards while on the stairs. They collected all of them. In retrospect, not sure why this was done so soon before everyone actually got closer to Deck 8 and outside. 

Once general alarm was sounded - everyone immediately reported to muster stations...as told to in the drill. 

When we were in the stairwells, plates of cookies came around (presumably from World Cafe). Those who stayed on the ship reported getting room service meals -not sure what they consisted off. I believe I'm correct that often it was more of a box / bag lunch sort of thing since one lady I talked to referred to getting similar to what we got while on the ship on Monday while waiting to get flight info / pack up rooms etc. LONG story on that one too but won't go into that right now. 

 

 

Okay, my scenario suggested a total ship blackout caused by the change in load on the propulsion system, so this is what you saw when the power went out.  Lights would have been very limited to a few battery powered lights in passageways and stairwells, until the emergency generator came on line to power essential services (not hotel) and more, but still limited lighting.  When a main generator was ready to go back on line, the emergency generator will be taken off first, dropping lighting back down to minimal, and then the main generator can come on line.  At this time, the engineers will work to establish power to essential equipment needed to keep that engine running, and will then start to reset the lighting and hotel services, so the lights in some areas may go off and on during this time.  Once a main generator is back on line, all hotel services will be restored, including running water (to wash hands) and vacuum pumps to power the toilet system.  For the most part, if you've got most of the lights on around the ship, you've got running water and flushing toilets.

[kathy49]

42 minutes ago, gretschwhtfalcon said:

 

I see your point and, being one of the passengers who spent a decent amount of time in the Explorer Lounge during part of early Saturday afternoon, I must admit to thereby probably falling under your designation of being an "idiot"; however, one likes to think that the ship is safe even under such conditions especially since up until that moment it for the most part seemed like just going through high seas and wind. I don't think anyone expected any impending danger. All that being said, once I heard the increasing roar of plates, etc. crashing and the chairs sliding around WITH people in them (obvious at least in the video I took), I knew it was time to get out of there. I will say this....the crew member referred to who was telling folks to move back was basically ignored (I have that on video too). In retrospect, I think the lounge should have been evacuated completely and the doors shut. Heard from one of the passengers who remained on the ship that the lounge piano came unbolted from the floor and is in bad shape. I briefly took a peek up on Deck 7 once I and the rest of the evacuees were allowed back on the ship in Molde  and saw the lounge was closed off. Things on the pool grill side looked pretty disastrous so can only imagine it's not much better in the lounge.

 

Now, your comment..  "The sea the Sky was facing was nothing comparing what we had encountered in our multiple TATL crossings (we have done 12 or 13 or 14 of such, lost count). "  struck me a bit . I have no way of knowing what you've actually faced during your rocky sea journeys, but I can't help but wonder if your statement somewhat smacks of how the caught fish always gets bigger with each retelling. I think perhaps your having not been on the Sky on Saturday afternoon, I might hazard to suggest that you may not be completely correct. Let me ask this....in the "much worse" conditions you refer to ...was there damage taking place in the vessel, let alone a general alarm sounded?  Please know I'm not trying to gainsay you, but I feel your statement may be a bit presumptuous. Just my take on it having lived through this. I suppose every situation is different. As you say, you refer to deeper water than we were in. Then, too, much depends on how much wind is present and what direction it comes from . We had WSW pushing the Sky towards a rocky lee shore. And, the area we were in is apparently noted for the types of conditions we experienced. I don't think it's quite comparable to other "high sea" incidents since, based on what has been stated in this very long thread, we were sailing through a "bomb cyclone". Ultimately doesn't matter. Guess your statement just got under my skin a bit since the terrifying experience of hanging over the water in a hoist is still pretty fresh in my mind. 

 

 

Thank you so much for your first hand information...this thread has so much speculation by no one that was on there...so many war stories from 100's of cruises but your experience is really the topic. Please continue to tell us your experience. So glad you are safe.

[Pratique]

45 minutes ago, VK3DQ said:

NOTE This report is not written with litigation in mind and, pursuant to Regulation 14(14) of the Merchant Shipping (Accident Reporting and Investigation) Regulations 2012, shall be inadmissible in any judicial proceedings whose purpose, or one of whose purposes is to attribute or apportion liability or blame.

I think a lot of transportation accident reports are like this. This just means litigants need to seek the same information from another source. Again, potentially for insurance purposes, not necessarily for seeking other forms of relief, but sometimes that too.

[just_dont]

If you are in a public space then you should have the expectation that you may be photographed.

I watched live video being broadcast on Norwegian TV after the ship arrived in Molde. At one point, some injured passengers were being escorted off the ship - one on a stretcher, and one in a foot/leg brace. Those people were clearly "in a public space." Nevertheless, a group of 5 or 6 EMTs held up blankets to protect the privacy of the passengers as they were brought down the gangway. Why?
1. Because they deserved to have their privacy protected, and
2. Because there are WAY too many people who have no respect for personal privacy

Essentially, what you said was the only place someone should have any expectation of privacy is inside their home or stateroom.

They weren't allowed in their stateroom.
That doesn't mean they've waived their right to privacy.
Just because you may not be violating a law (though in the EU you may be), it doesn't mean you should be posting those sort of images.
What if the people in those pictures were hurt?
What if they were seriously injured?
What if they were naked?
Where would you draw the line and say the images violated personal privacy?

It's more an issue of civil behavior than legal rights.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

[oann]

https://sysla.no/maritim/viking-sky-vil-seile-hustadvika-igjen-onsdag/?utm_source=aftenbladet

This is a subscription magazine so not sure if the link will work. Brief summary below.

 

Latest is that Sky is planning to head to Kristiansund on Wednesday. They have applied for a single voyage permission. The Norwegian maritime department have to ok'd this but they set as a  condition that they have a tug escort the whole way and have recommended an extra tug to help in Kristiansund. They think they will get the application processed this evening. The Sky will move under it's own power but the tug will be along in case of problems. They also at the moment only have one anchor as they had to cut one chain during the incident. The trip up to Kristiansund means they have to cross Hustadvika again.

Edited March 27, 2019 by oann

[Pratique]

3 minutes ago, just_dont said:

I watched live video being broadcast on Norwegian TV after the ship arrived in Molde. At one point, some injured passengers were being escorted off the ship - one on a stretcher, and one in a foot/leg brace. Those people were clearly "in a public space." Nevertheless, a group of 5 or 6 EMTs held up blankets to protect the privacy of the passengers as they were brought down the gangway. Why?
1. Because they deserved to have their privacy protected, and
2. Because there are WAY too many people who have no respect for personal privacy

I've seen similar actions to provide privacy to injured guests being taken off the ship on several of my cruises. It's hard to do when dozens of people are hanging over their balconies out of curiosity.

 

I also noticed all the people gathered at the port in Molde to greet the ship. I didn't realize that some were guests who had been evacuated, but there were also some locals who I presume were there out of the best intentions to be friendly and supportive. But it did seem a bit crowded. At one point they parked several ambulances to provide some more privacy on the pier. I'm not certain but I believe the police had asked locals to steer clear of town so as not to create traffic congestion. I presume there were many curious to see the ship arrive.

[OnTheJourney]

20 minutes ago, oann said:

https://sysla.no/maritim/viking-sky-vil-seile-hustadvika-igjen-onsdag/?utm_source=aftenbladet

This is a subscription magazine so not sure if the link will work. Brief summary below.

 

Latest is that Sky is planning to head to Kristiansund on Wednesday. They have applied for a single voyage permission. The Norwegian maritime department have to ok'd this but they set as a  condition that they have a tug escort the whole way and have recommended an extra tug to help in Kristiansund. They think they will get the application processed this evening. The Sky will move under it's own power but the tug will be along in case of problems. They also at the moment only have one anchor as they had to cut one chain during the incident. The trip up to Kristiansund means they have to cross Hustadvika again.

 

Oh...gosh....What is the purpose of this single voyage anyway?  Will it be available to the public as a brief sightseeing cruise? Or just a repositioning with only crew onboard? Think I'll pass 🙂

Edited March 27, 2019 by gretschwhtfalcon

[nho9504]

4 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

While commenting on marine operational issues, I can only assume you have minimal, if any training or experience in ship operations. In response to some of your points:

 

1) Ship would capsize, if heeled 45 degree. This vessel was still intact, so had full stability. Memory is a little hazy, but the maximum righting lever GZ, must occur after at least 30 degrees of heel. To determine when a vessel capsizes you must be privy to the vessel specific cross curves of stability. Yes -every ship is different. My best guess is when intact it will have positive stability to at least 80 degrees and most likely about 90 degrees.

 

2) Lifejacket storage on outer decks is in compliance with SOLAS and Flag State. Had the vessel actually grounded, no time might be available to retrieve L/J's from cabins. If crew had a potential of going overboard then their supervisor should have ensured they were tied-off.  While I discount media reports, if crew were on the outer decks and not secured, then as Captain, I would ensure their supervisor was researching alternative employment options. Jeopordising crew safety is not acceptable.

 

If lifejackets on outer decks bothers you, hope you enjoy the mega ships.

 

3) Having been in many storms, the entire ship is a fairly dangerous environment, so where exactly from your experience would you have them go. BTW, when the ship is moving violently, it is highly recommended to limit movement around the ship, unless completely necessary.

 

Many reports from passengers actually on board have praised the crew for their actions in tending to the passengers.

 

However, from watching a narrow perspective on a film, you apparently gained full situational awareness and know better than the trained crew managing the Assembly Stations. Did you ever consider that other areas, not seen in the film, may be worse.

 

Personally, while the environment shown was not the safest, without being present and having full situational awareness, it is highly inappropriate to making comments.

 

4) With respect to being in that environment, the message provided at the Muster Drills is very clear. On hearing the General Emergency Signal, proceed to your cabin (if safe), collect warm clothing and medications and go to the Assembly Station. So at the Assembly Station you should already have meds, etc.

 

5) In your experience the Captain makes a PA in about an hour. Well again reports from passengers on board stated they received excellent communications. While every incident is different, as a Captain, my objective is to advise the pax ASAP, however working with the Chief Engineer, Staff Captain and Hotel Director were critical in this incident. Personally, unless an extreme emergency, I consider an hour for the Captain to talk to pax initially might be rather long.

 

6) Your ability to determine this incident exposes operational issues, is truly amazing, since no facts have actually been published by the relevant authorities. I also doubt you have any knowledge of the ISM Code and the requisite operations manuals documenting the company's policy & procedures. Both of these sources are required to making any informed determination.

 

7) Captain is a, "Hired Gun". Wow, can't imaging a more disrespectful comment regarding a marine professional, who led a team that saved the ship and about 1,400 passengers & crew.

 

The use of manning agencies and ship managers is very common practice in the marine industry, which permits companies to outsource specialised HR functions. Whether, the Master is employed directly by ship owner, or a 3rd party, the responsibility does not change.

 

All manning agencies/ship managers have a responsibility to provide quality Masters/officers/crew, as maintaining the contract depends on it. Lots of options are available to ship owners.

 

8- Yes, the depth of water impacts sea state, as does many other factors, including fetch, duration, etc. However, the primary factor on the Viking Sky incident is the ship was "deadship" Ships can easily handle much rougher seas, but with engines, the Captain has the ability to adjust course and/or speed to ease the passage. In the worst case scenario, you go head to wind, with sufficient power to keep the head to wind. This is considered "Hove to".

 

When a ship has no power it will naturally turn beam to the wind, causing significant rolling. I doubt during any of your T/A's you were deadship in a major storm. 

 

I can see this board is full of Vikings apologists.

 

You can bet 95% of more passengers on the Vikings Sky would NOT have ANY of the technical knowledge here posted by several old masters.  From an ordinary passenger's stand point, A Lot of the Operational Procedures are quite questionable in this incident / accident.  As the Sea is NOT that rough even the officials said that - the ship is fully capable to handle the weather conditions, even the experts posted here seem to agree with that.

 

Then the inevitable questions are - WHY a 2 years old ship fared so poorly under such medium type of rough sea (for lacking the knowledge to use the correct terminology to describe it) ?

 

Sure it is good to have several ex-masters, marine experts to post on this thread, but the majority of passengers do NOT need to know this in depth knowledge in order to go cruising and feel being safe.

 

Life jackets are stored outside on all ships for exactly when during a true emergency passengers cannot return to their cabins to bring the life jackets in their cabins and must get to muster stations asap. 

 

But that is not the case on Sky from all we have known so far.  It is not in danger of being capsized.  Before things get really rough, i.e. doors broken, water gushing in, ship listing, there were time to give warnings for people to get prepared for the worse to come.

 

I do not read about any such actions being taken.  It almost feels that they were like sitting ducks and then let the waves to pound them left and right when the ship lost all its engines.

 

It strikes me that the safety of the passengers is not of the utmost importance in the operation procedure of the Sky or Viking Oceans the company.   That is a shocker to me.

 

Those Viking Apologists can continue to defend the company however they want, but I suspect a good percentage of the passengers who have gone thru this ordeal would think otherwise.  And I do not blame them.

 

For parting, I feel those said if you dont accept the danger and risk, then you should stay home - are very wrong and very irresponsible.   Most who set out to a cruise vacation want to have a fun and safe trip, not a potential life-threatening adventure.  There are other adventurous sports fit the bill.  Ocean cruising on a cruise ship is not one of such.

Edited March 27, 2019 by nho9504

[just_dont]

 
Oh...gosh....What is the purpose of this single voyage anyway?  Will it be available to the public as a brief sightseeing cruise? Or just a repositioning with only crew onboard? Think I'll pass [emoji846]

I'm 99.9% sure you're joking, but it was said in a prior post that Kristiansund is where the repairs will be made, and they have to get the ship there.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

[Hanoj]

9 minutes ago, gretschwhtfalcon said:

 

Oh...gosh....What is the purpose of this single voyage anyway?  Will it be available to the public as a brief sightseeing cruise? Or just a repositioning with only crew onboard? Think I'll pass 🙂

Not sure if intended as humor, but the purpose is so Viking get the repairs made, which of course they hope will get a permanent sailing permit once investigation and repairs completed.

[Vineyard View]

It continues to amaze me the continued negative speculation proposed on this thread. Even with the calm factual rebuttals on here, by professionals who actually know of what they speak, people just have to keep digging for dirt, for wrongs done they have no knowledge of, who were not there but sure want to find blame - of passengers, crew, captain, company. 

Then I go over to FB and read the many posts by actual passengers who were on this sailing. I read their stories and feedback, and the environment is so very different.  It is positive. It is grateful. Most state they will sail Viking again without hesitation. 

I am most appreciative of you chengkp75 - as well as others who are doing their best to enlighten with their expertise......so I sincerely thank you, as well Heidi13, Phil, Jim, and a few others who continue to respond with calm, factual answers. I have certainly learned a lot from you. 

Lets give the authorities who are investigating this situation, who are hands on to find the answers to why, do their jobs before making so many assumptions. 

Edited March 27, 2019 by Vineyard View

[AmazedByCruising]

On 3/25/2019 at 6:33 AM, Heidi13 said:

This wasn't a Muster Drill.

 

My only excuse is that the word "muster" and "drill" have become one word in my mind. 🙂 

 

 

On 3/25/2019 at 6:33 AM, Heidi13 said:

The reason the passengers have not been released from the Assembly Stations is because the Master has determined that for their safety and comfort, it is best that they remain in the Assembly Stations.

 

The ship may not have been sinking, but we have no information on the conditions throughout the ship - water, toilets, lighting, A/C, etc. With limited main engines operational to generate power, limited power is available for hotel services.

 

In addition, if the situation deteriorated rapidly, having passengers in cabins causes unnecessary delays and also requires re-tasking hotel staff as stairway guides, etc.

 

OK. I do realize that a little more comfort for the passengers is less important then the slightest reason to keep them put at their station.

 

Leading to another question: does the Captain have a backup or is he completely on his own? Although he's the ultimate authority on the ship, he might like to have a virtual "situation room" set up in situations like these, filled with other Captains, Chief Engineers, doctors etc. to give advice? Like asking "One anchor? Both?" or even the advice "Let HD give out cookies, it will prevent panic" (I made both up, but something like that). I didn't see anything like that in the Concordia footage. 

[OnTheJourney]

I don't have the technical knowledge you speak of, but....what would the officials gain by saying the sea was rough? Doesn't do much to help them defend the decision to sail that day. Obviously, with all the damage that was occurring and things being bad enough to issue a mayday, it seems a reasonable conclusion that the sea was too rough for the Sky - at least that day. 

[Jarmo]

nho, you do realize you're chirpin' a ship's Captain?

[OnTheJourney]

7 minutes ago, just_dont said:

I'm 99.9% sure you're joking, but it was said in a prior post that Kristiansund is where the repairs will be made, and they have to get the ship there.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
 

 

Sorry....there has been so much info on this thread....now I do recall that repairs are being done there. So, no, was not joking...especially the part about preferring not to be part of the sailing. Perhaps some other time. 

[Vineyard View]

2 minutes ago, gretschwhtfalcon said:

I don't have the technical knowledge you speak of, but....what would the officials gain by saying the sea was rough? Doesn't do much to help them defend the decision to sail that day. Obviously, with all the damage that was occurring and things being bad enough to issue a mayday, it seems a reasonable conclusion that the sea was too rough for the Sky - at least that day. 

Correct. You do not have the technical knowledge. Spot on 

[orvil]

FYI, when we were aboard Regent's Voyager this past January, they told us that the rules had changed at the beginning of January.  Life jackets were now stored in lockers on deck.  We did not have life jackets in the staterooms anymore.  Also, we did not have to demonstrate use of the life jackets.  We just watched a demonstration.  Just like the airlines.

 

A previous post discussed command communication during the crisis.  In aviation, the rule is aviate, navigate and communicate.  That means fly the plane, know where you are going, then advise authorities of your problem.  All the while you are working a solution to whatever problem you have encountered.

 

The Sky's Captain and technical crew were doing something very similar.  First, they were trying to not hit the lee shore.  They dropped the anchor. (I'm still amazed the anchor bit and held.)  Next, they were trying to restart the generators and establish propulsion.  As ChengKG75 says, it takes time to reestablish power.  It's an involved process and they use very complex checklists.  They practice this all the time.  But, it takes time to accomplish.  After all of this was done or in final process, the Captain could then communicate with the emergency personnel.  Last, he could communicate with the passengers and order the evacuation.

 

I practiced this.  Waiting for communication and waiting for the call for evacuation seems to take days.  But, it's really only minutes and in some cases seconds.  Time expands and compresses in the strangest ways.  It's a phenomena that has be to experienced to be believed.  It takes a lot of training and discipline to not react and wait for instruction.

 

The crew appeared to be well-trained, disciplined and competent.  They did their job under pressure.  People are alive today because of their professionalism.  It's easy to be an arm chair quarterback.  It's a lot harder when you are in the situation.

 

I've never sailed with Viking.  Given the circumstances as I currently understand them, I wouldn't hesitate to sail with them.    

[OnTheJourney]

Was I just slapped on the wrist for NOT having technical knowledge?  If so...I can accept that. But can venture my opinions anyway. Alot of "armchair quarterbacking" going on here anyway. Think I'll just follow this from now on instead of posting. I lived through it and have pics and videos to document all of it for my own keepsake...the rest I will leave up to the experts AND those with technical knowledge.....