Viking incident

[Wine-O]

27 minutes ago, richstowe said:

You think Viking ocean cruises should be avoided because of this ? Should we avoid all ocean cruises or just Viking's ?

 Sorry you missed my parody and humor.  

[richstowe]

4 minutes ago, Wine-O said:

 Sorry you missed my parody and humor.  

This is CC . You should have included a  .

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, richstowe said:

Completely disagree . I've been through severe gale force winds off Cape Hatteras ,a location crossed by all ships going north/south off the eastern Atlantic . I was told by an officer that this was perfectly normal and that's what modern cruise ships are designed to handle . There would be a very limited cruise itineraries if all such areas were avoided . 

Now if Viking knew in advance that they were having engine issues , that would be different .

 

 

Pretty typical for many on Cruise Critic not to want to hold cruise lines accountable for their bad decisions. Viking announced this itinerary with great fanfare touting that other cruise lines would not do the itinerary in the winter. There are good reasons why cruise lines have not been doing that itiinerary in the winter. That Hurtigruten which is the most expereinced ship operator in the region held their ships in Bergen and Trondheim because of the predicted weather conditions is telling information.  

 

Edited March 25, 2019 by Charles4515

[richstowe]

3 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

Pretty typical for many on Cruise Critic not to want to hold cruise lines accountable for their bad decisions.

Is this parody and humor or do you feel that somehow Viking believes it is in their interest to be reckless ? I suppose you also believe all cruise lines should abandon all areas where hurricanes may go , where gales may blow or Norovirus may flow . Yes pretty typical of some on CC .

[MizDemeanor]

Its a challenge to manage responses...this was a very new situations for all of us and thankfully it has been with out the loss of life.

 

In the end the Captain and the Crew did their utmost to care for the passengers under the cirucmtances. .  

[Charles4515]

Is this parody and humor or do you feel that somehow Viking believes it is in their interest to be reckless ? I suppose you also believe all cruise lines should abandon all areas where hurricanes may go , where gales may blow or Norovirus may flow . Yes pretty typical of some on CC .

Hustadvika is one of the most difficult areas to pass by in stormy weather. Hurtigruten which normally passes by twice a day all year chose not to. So yes, I believe Viking was reckless.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Delete

Edited March 25, 2019 by Stateroom_Sailor

[NantahalaCruiser]

21 hours ago, ebtrip said:

We will be sailing the Sky April 6th.  This will be the first cruise after this event.  So glad everyone is safe.. I’ve been on over 45 cruises, and YES, had some  that the weather caused some inconveniences.  This was terrible, but that goodness everyone survived.. this is our 2nd with Viking.. a very different experience from Celebrity..we are fans of both. Hopefully our cruise won’t be cancelled.

Sorry, but I expect that your cruise will be cancelled - lot of damage to repair and engine failure to investigate.

[Silkroad]

13 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

 

Pretty typical for many on Cruise Critic not to want to hold cruise lines accountable for their bad decisions. Viking announced this itinerary with great fanfare touting that other cruise lines would not do the itinerary in the winter. There are good reasons why cruise lines have not been doing that itiinerary in the winter. That Hurtigruten which is the most expereinced ship operator in the region held their ships in Bergen and Trondheim because of the predicted weather conditions is telling information.  

 

You may wish to check your assumptions. According to a member who posted on a very active Viking thread (see post #736) there are other lines that routinely sail those waters in winter. The name of that thread is below:

 

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

[BigAl94]

Norwegian authorities launch investigation https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6847377/Norway-launches-investigation-Viking-Sky-cruise-ship-set-sail.html

[Presto2]

1 hour ago, BigAl94 said:

Norwegian authorities launch investigation https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6847377/Norway-launches-investigation-Viking-Sky-cruise-ship-set-sail.html

 

They have no choice other than to launch an investigation in the circumstances. Personally I think that the issue was the engine problem, but I am no expert so will wait to see what comes of it all.

[JFontaine]

On 3/24/2019 at 8:39 AM, jkgourmet said:

Update:  479 or 478 passengers were airlifted off the ship.  Remaining passengers are safe on the ship.  20 passengers were injured from the rock and roll on the ship, all have been treated and nearly all have been released from hospital/clinics.

 

the ship is limping to port (I'm not sure where) with one engine operational and assisted by tugboats.

 

Source:  multiple news reports posted in the last 30 minutes.

 

scary - yes.  But let's keep it in perspective.  Your odds of being in a major car accident, plane accident or needing brain surgery are much higher than this.  

According to NBC news just now, seven people still hospitalized, one critical but stable.  

[Charles4515]

Viking Sky cruise ship engine failure off Norway coast caused by low oil levels: official

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/engine-failure-on-cruise-ship-stranded-off-norway-coast-caused-by-low-oil-levels-official

[villauk]

6 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

Viking Sky cruise ship engine failure off Norway coast caused by low oil levels: official

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/engine-failure-on-cruise-ship-stranded-off-norway-coast-caused-by-low-oil-levels-official
 

 

 

Thanks for posting.

[gatour]

On 3/24/2019 at 9:22 PM, Charles4515 said:

 

Pretty typical for many on Cruise Critic not to want to hold cruise lines accountable for their bad decisions. Viking announced this itinerary with great fanfare touting that other cruise lines would not do the itinerary in the winter. There are good reasons why cruise lines have not been doing that itiinerary in the winter. That Hurtigruten which is the most expereinced ship operator in the region held their ships in Bergen and Trondheim because of the predicted weather conditions is telling information.  

 

 

You obviously did not read the thread on the Viking Ocean forum.

 

Besides several of the normal commentators with in-depth knowledge of ship operations in these type of conditions.  There was a local who works on ferries/supply ships similar to what Hurtigruten has historically done in the past.  However according to him, Hurtigruten has mostly turned into a tourist operation.  He said 30 years ago, they most likely would have sailed.  The didn't this time most likely due to the potential discomfort of the passengers.

 

Ships regularly sail in these type of conditions.  If the ship hadn't lost power, this would have been a non-event.

 

Yes, the ship lost power due to lack of oil pressure.  However, the oil levels were at acceptable levels based on operational standards, so at this point of time you can not say the crew was negligent.

 

There have already been directives sent out in relation to amount of oil in regards to heavy seas for similar ships.

 

[richstowe]

17 hours ago, gatour said:

Yes, the ship lost power due to lack of oil pressure.  However, the oil levels were at acceptable levels based on operational standards, so at this point of time you can not say the crew was negligent.

I mostly agree but,  " “Relatively low” oil levels on the Viking Sky triggered the cruise ship’s engines issues over the weekend off the coast of Norway, an official said Wednesday." . So while the crew wasn't negligent it is possible that forecast high seas might have warranted higher oil levels . They could have been more proactive . 

[ebtrip]

On 3/25/2019 at 6:35 AM, NantahalaCruiser said:

Sorry, but I expect that your cruise will be cancelled - lot of damage to repair and engine failure to investigate.

 

I am on the April 6h sailing, and as of today, we have been told the ship will be ready for our cruise, of course, things can change. The engines Were NOT damaged.  This is our 2nd Viking Ocean cruise.  If you have never sailed on Viking it is very different from Celebrity.   Included tours, wine with lunch and dinner, no photographers, no casino, no children, no charge for specialty restaurants.  If you want to bring on wine or booze, no problem.  My go to cruise line is Celebrity, but Viking has become my second.  We can’t wait to board on Saturday.