Cruise ship evacuated off Greek island

[Mark]

This is exactly why I try to stay away from Greek cruise ships or ships with Greek officers...they do not have a good history with cruise ships!

 

I have much more faith in the Italians and the Norwegians!

 

I remember the cruise ship that was sinking off of the coast of South Africa several years ago....the Greek captain, his officers and crew all evacuated the ship before the passengers supposedly "to organize a rescue". I remember that the cruise director or some other non-sailor member of the ship's company was left to work with the passengers on their evacuation.

 

How could this captain run his ship into rocks in an area that the ship sails to on a regular basis...last time I looked, rocks (boulders) on the ocean floor do not move around like ships! In addition, this ship does not appear to have a whole lot of hull under the water like QM2, QE2 or Norway.

[Aprille]

I heard on the radio this morning on my way to work that a French man and his daughter are still unaccounted for. :(

 

Anyone else heard anything like this?

[Cruising89143]

Here is a link that shows the ship listing and then going under.

 

Look for the video links and click on the first link.

http://svt.se/svt/jsp/Crosslink.jsp?d=22584&a=801116&lid=puff_801135&lpos=lasmer

[MrPete]

Hmm... I do see "Other Cruise Lines"

 

Maybe you can do something REAL PRODUCTIVE and start a poll on how many people visit there, and would actually find this info. :rolleyes:

 

Now it was news to me that this actually sunk!

[Mark]

thanks for the link on the video...very interesting and yet very sad...only good thing is that apparently there are no confirmed deaths or injuries...also Sea Diamond received a burial at sea - although it be premature...rather than ending up on some filthy beach in Alang India with hundreds of Indians disecting her with blowtorches...like so many other cruise ships!

 

I wonder what the Greeks are going to do about all the oil she carries and if some salvage company will try to raise her...does not appear that the water can be too deep there?

[Aprille]

Here is a link to the story I heard on the radio this morning reporting 2 are still missing:

 

Greek Cruise Ship Sinks 15 Hours After Hitting Mediterranean Reef, 2 Missing

 

ETA: You will have to click on the link to the article with the title above.

[wakelover]

Just watched her sink on tv....:( Very sad

[madforcruising]

While no confirmed deads yet, two french - father and daughter - are missed and the search has been stopped. It´s very likely they are dead. A report just right now on the news said that the mother had been able to escape the already under water cabin by diving through some water but she don´t know what happened to the rest of her family.

 

The water is according to news reports 200 meter deep and the tanks of the Sea Diamond are full with oil.

[wakelover]

Apparently the Sea Diamond was 22000tonnes.

 

Here's a link to her information:

http://www.friendlyplanet.com/cruise-ships/louis-sea-diamond.html

 

As the previous poster said, the wife of the missing frenchman said water was pouring into her cabin so she got out but did not know whether her husband and daughter got out.

 

Does this sound odd to anyone else or just me?:confused: .....surely you would know what happened if you were in the cabin with them at the time. I mean surely just looking behind you and seeing they werent there would make you wonder and go back???

 

No??

[Cruising89143]

Apparently the Sea Diamond was 22000tonnes.

 

Here's a link to her information:

http://www.friendlyplanet.com/cruise-ships/louis-sea-diamond.html

 

As the previous poster said, the wife of the missing frenchman said water was pouring into her cabin so she got out but did not know whether her husband and daughter got out.

 

Does this sound odd to anyone else or just me?:confused: .....surely you would know what happened if you were in the cabin with them at the time. I mean surely just looking behind you and seeing they weren't there would make you wonder and go back???

 

No??

 

It's hard to say what would have happened. I'm sure that panic set in and who knows how chaotic it was. Very say anyway that you look at it.

[wakelover]

It's hard to say what would have happened. I'm sure that panic set in and who knows how chaotic it was. Very say anyway that you look at it.

Very true...its tragic. I just pray that they are alive and well and somehow are just lost in the crowd or a bit dazed somewhere.

Please God let them be found alive...

[Sea Island Lady]

This is very sad news! Doesn't sound real good for the father and daughter that are missing.:(

 

falcon5travels - I am so thankful that you heard from your daughter and her friends. :)

 

This incident just goes to show that these "Titanic" type accidents can still happen. If that ship had been one of the newer, larger cruise ships of today, the circumstances could have been much worse. With it taking three hours to evacuate just over 1,500 people, can you imagine the mass hysteria and the time of evacuating over 4,000! :eek: Certainly more lives could be lost.

 

I think the "Titanic" joke that was on these boards yesterday was so tasteless, especially in light of this incident in the news.

 

Additional note: The paper said that the mother ran from the cabin to look for her other daughter that was up on deck. perhaps she thought her DH and DD were behind her.

[Cruising89143]

This is very sad news! Doesn't sound real good for the father and daughter that are missing.:(

 

falcon5travels - I am so thankful that you heard from your daughter and her friends. :)

 

This incident just goes to show that these "Titanic" type accidents can still happen. If that ship had been one of the newer, larger cruise ships of today, the circumstances could have been much worse. With it taking three hours to evacuate just over 1,500 people, can you imagine the mass hysteria and the time of evacuating over 4,000! :eek: Certainly more lives could be lost.

 

I think the "Titanic" joke that was on these boards yesterday was so tasteless, especially in light of this incident in the news.

 

 

I have read conflicting reports on how long it actually took to evacuate all of the passengers and crew from this ship. One report stated two hours. If that's the case then it is not good. What happens if that ship were on fire? I guess more will come out in the days ahead and we will know. I can't imagine trying to evacuate a ships with over 3000 guests on board.

[madforcruising]

Does this sound odd to anyone else or just me?:confused: .....surely you would know what happened if you were in the cabin with them at the time. I mean surely just looking behind you and seeing they werent there would make you wonder and go back???

 

No??

 

 

Well I can see with water pouring into the cabin and hallways, panic, and even maybe the loss of power that you escape thinking your family is right behind you, but once realizing they are not being unable to go back and look.

[mondello]

It was reported on the Today show this morning that the ship has now sank. Passengers and crew exremely lucky that this happened so close to shore and all got off safely.

Yes, it is great that nearly everybody was able to evacuate, being so close to shore. However, if they weren't so close to shore they would have been in deeper water and the ship wouldn't of been piloted into the rocks. This just goes to show how vital the harbor pilots are that come aboard to ensure safe passage in/out of ports.

[jad7984]

I really wonder how the small island of Santorini is accommodating all of the pax. I know it has limited resources (hotels, restaurants, etc.)

 

I can't believe the ship sunk. I thought the watertight doors were closed and would keep the ship afloat. Guess I was wrong. Now if it took that long to evacuate just over 1,000 pax, what would happen if this were a mega ship with 3k+? Can they lower lifeboats if the ship is listing badly? Anyone know?

 

I do hope that the two missing are found. Doesn't look good though.:(

[reapfm]

Thanks to the OP for starting this thread. As soon as d/h heard about this, he asked if anything was posted. I told him I would check and found this thread. This is why we go to the muster drills, no matter how many cruises we take, just as a refresher.

 

Glad to hear you heard from d/d. Hope she is well, and will be home soon. I know you are anxious to see her, and see with your own eyes that she is okay.

[madforcruising]

I really wonder how the small island of Santorini is accommodating all of the pax. I know it has limited resources (hotels, restaurants, etc.)

 

I can't believe the ship sunk. I thought the watertight doors were closed and would keep the ship afloat. Guess I was wrong. Now if it took that long to evacuate just over 1,000 pax, what would happen if this were a mega ship with 3k+? Can they lower lifeboats if the ship is listing badly? Anyone know?

 

I do hope that the two missing are found. Doesn't look good though.:(

 

 

I really don´t know about the evacuation procedure in real emergencies, however I´m sure it all depends on how urgent procedures have to be done. In this case it looks like it took many hours until the ship finally sunk and so they may have kind of "slowed down" the evacuation to make it most safely ofr passengers and crew. In other emergency situation they may be able to speed up the evacuation procedure though risking a little more and expecting minor injuries during the procedure. ´

 

I would guess it´s always a matter of what has to be done in what time frame in a mmost possible and "convenient" matter.

 

As to lowering the life boats with a listing ship. I would say up to a certain dgree yes, but with a real bad listing it should be impossible.

[Sea Island Lady]

The area where the ship sank, sure looks spooky now.

http://www.santorini.info/webcam/

[jezzdogg]

To the poster who said he would not sail with a ship with Greek Officcers, Celebrity Cruise lines where started by the Chandros family(therefore the X for ch) almost all officers are Greek and have sailed them and will continue to........We have found there Captains are wonderful

Hope the father and daughter are found on the island, but does not look good

[Minoushka]

For those still following...

There were also about 60 Canadian students on the ship among the passengers.

Here is a further news link as at the dinner hour...

http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/TopStories/ContentPosting.aspx?feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V2&showbyline=True&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20070405%2fgreekisland_cruise_070405

 

 

there are 60 students from lester b pearson high school from montreal

apparently all are safe

i wonder if other schools will cancel furure european trips because of this

i hope they find the french man and daughter

[OGCFreddie]

This is exactly why I try to stay away from Greek cruise ships or ships with Greek officers...they do not have a good history with cruise ships!

 

I have much more faith in the Italians and the Norwegians!

 

I remember the cruise ship that was sinking off of the coast of South Africa several years ago....the Greek captain, his officers and crew all evacuated the ship before the passengers supposedly "to organize a rescue". I remember that the cruise director or some other non-sailor member of the ship's company was left to work with the passengers on their evacuation.

 

How could this captain run his ship into rocks in an area that the ship sails to on a regular basis...last time I looked, rocks (boulders) on the ocean floor do not move around like ships! In addition, this ship does not appear to have a whole lot of hull under the water like QM2, QE2 or Norway.

 

Although I hate to sterotype I have to admit that I thought about history of the problems with Greek Lines as well. The ship you were referring to was the Oceanus. When I was Asst. Cruise Director on the Costa Classica, the other Asst. was Julian Butler. He was the Magician on the Oceanus when it went down and one of the ones responsible for evacuating all of the passengers. I remember when I met him that I was so shocked that he'd choose to work on another ship right after one had sunk beneath him. Here's a link to the story about the Oceanus if you are interested. Just click on the youtube link on the bottom of the page:

 

http://www.benthic.ca/report.cfm?report=31

[Mark]

Jezz,

 

Celebrity does have Greek Officers but it is also owned by Royal Caribbean which is as far as I know an American publicly held company with an officer corps that has traditionally been mostly Norwegian with a few Swedes and Fins thrown in...today with the growth of the company, I understand they also have a couple of Amercians and Canadians...seems the demand for Norwegian officers is so great that they have to look elsewhere.

 

If I am wrong about the Norwegians, why is there such a demand for them? There does not seem to be a shortage of Greek officers?

 

I am not anti-Greek...I am just making a point that traditionally you hear of these horror stories on cruise ships that are either owned by Greeks or staffed by Greeks or both.

[Sea Island Lady]

One of the best Captains in the Celebrity fleet is Captain Iordanis Adamidis from Greece. He was the Captain of the Millennium. I'm not sure where he is now, but his wife is Joyce Gleeson- Adamidis who is a major contributor to Cruise Critic.

[madforcruising]

Jezz,

 

Celebrity does have Greek Officers but it is also owned by Royal Caribbean which is as far as I know an American publicly held company with an officer corps that has traditionally been mostly Norwegian with a few Swedes and Fins thrown in...today with the growth of the company, I understand they also have a couple of Amercians and Canadians...seems the demand for Norwegian officers is so great that they have to look elsewhere.

 

If I am wrong about the Norwegians, why is there such a demand for them? There does not seem to be a shortage of Greek officers?

 

I am not anti-Greek...I am just making a point that traditionally you hear of these horror stories on cruise ships that are either owned by Greeks or staffed by Greeks or both.

 

 

RCCL = Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. is a company incorporated in the State of Liberia.

 

They currently operate the three cruise brands

RCI = Royal Caribbean International

X = Celebrity Cruises

Pullmantur

 

There are 34 ships operated right now with a passenger capacity of approximately 67.900.

 

(This information is from the RCCL website).

 

With Celebrity cruises being the former Chandris Cruise Line they traditionally have greek nautical officers, while RCI nautical officersare mostly recruited in the scandinavian countries.