So , Has anyone ever abandoned ship ?

[loman]

I asked the same question on the RCCL thread. Didnt get any response. Has anyone ever had to get into a lifeboat off of a cruise ship ? I cant see this happening , with all of the elctronics on board to avoid any potential disaster. I think the muster drill is a bit overplayed. They should give you a card , so if you participated once , you just flash the card and get excused from the drill. You will most likely be able to find your muster station within a reasonable time , if a real disaster did strike. Just a thought.

[Aandark]

I asked the same question on the RCCL thread. Didnt get any response. Has anyone ever had to get into a lifeboat off of a cruise ship ? I cant see this happening , with all of the elctronics on board to avoid any potential disaster. I think the muster drill is a bit overplayed. They should give you a card , so if you participated once , you just flash the card and get excused from the drill. You will most likely be able to find your muster station within a reasonable time , if a real disaster did strike. Just a thought.

 

The reality is you will probably never need to abandon ship...but what if that 1 in a million chance happened and it was necessary. If there was no drill, you would have a situation where people had no idea where to go...and inevitably this would probably result in greater injuries. Part of the muster is so that people know where to go, and I believe that part of it is psychological...we practiced so I know there is a plan...so I don't need to panic..just do what I was taught. I spent 4 years in the navy doing this on a daily basis while out at sea. If I don't mind suffering through this civilian routine, I'm sure that it's ok for you all to put down your beer and margaritas for 30 minutes and go with the program. Some of you who complain about this would be the first to sue if there ever was an emergency that you weren't prepared for.

[loman]

Yes Mark,

 

you have a point there, can you imagine the kaos that would erupt, if there ever was an emergency, even after the muster drill training. 3000 plus people making an exit ? Wouldnt be pretty.

[rjm1cc]

Woke up to the warning horn going off. Problem is I did not know how many times it had already gone off. I heard 6. 7 is adbandon ship. There were people with vests on ready to get off but fortunately it was only six and after a few hours all was back to normal. The ship had lost all power, fire doors were closed and the fire alarms were going off. I have also been on board when the ship did have a fire. Overall the crew did a very good job and that is probably because they pratice for emergencies. I think a first time cruiser would be glad they went to muster drill if this happened to them.

[Travelcat2]

While the odds may be low, there have been two accidents in Antartica where the ship had to be abandoned. Also in recent history is the ship that sunk in Santorini (all three passenger cruise ships). Not sure if people abandoned ship, but, there have been fires on Princess ships -- at least one person killed in the first.

 

I'd rather go through a muster drill than have a problem and have no clue what to do.

[leaveitallbehind]

I asked the same question on the RCCL thread. Didnt get any response. Has anyone ever had to get into a lifeboat off of a cruise ship ? I cant see this happening , with all of the elctronics on board to avoid any potential disaster. I think the muster drill is a bit overplayed. They should give you a card , so if you participated once , you just flash the card and get excused from the drill. You will most likely be able to find your muster station within a reasonable time , if a real disaster did strike. Just a thought.

 

The muster drill is a maritime regulation and all passengers must participate before the ship can depart port. Not sure how the card idea would work in practicality. The need to participate is not just to be sure you look good in the lifevest - it is also to orient you to where your muster station is on that particular ship, familiarize you with the alarms, etc. The drill you are trying to avoid only takes about 20 minutes - and your lack of familiarity with where you are supposed to go could affect others trying to get there. Modern electronics can't prevent every emergency and although I agree that the chance of a problem is very slim, it still can happen. Just another thought.

[collegecruiser346]

Even modern cruise ships can sink. Someone mentioned the ship in Santorini. The ship was named the MS Sea Diamond. It sank in 2007 after running a ground. There were 1,195 passengers on board. All but 2 were evacuated in under 4 hours. I don't think this would be possible if people hadn't done the muster drill. If the ship is sinking, its going to be mass panic regardless, but if people at least know exactly where to go in the event of an emergency, they'll have a fighting chance.

[ILoveScotland]

Even though we've all been to muster drills it's good to have the reminder of where to go should there be an emergency. Plus, not everyone would look at the card in their cabin.

 

Totally aside from government regulations the very nature of putting finding the life jacket in the cabin, putting it on and finding the Muster Station helps us know what to do and where to go should there be a real emergency. The practice could prevent chaos.

[lddam]

In 1998, my sister was sailing on the Monarch of the Seas (RCCL) when the ship struck a charted reef on its approach to St. Maarten. Passengers were evacuated to the island and the MOS was out of service for four months. It was her first cruise, and she hasn't set foot on a cruiseship since.

[leaveitallbehind]

In 1998, my sister was sailing on the Monarch of the Seas (RCCL) when the ship struck a charted reef on its approach to St. Maarten. Passengers were evacuated to the island and the MOS was out of service for four months. It was her first cruise, and she hasn't set foot on a cruiseship since.

 

 

A shame she hasn't got back on a ship since, but if that was her first cruise then that's one heck of a memory! The story behind the incident is that the ship had made an uscheduled stop in St.Maarten to evacuate a passenger with a medical emergency and stuck the reef on it's way back out to sea. The captain then ran the ship aground intentionally on the sand in shallow waters as it was taking on water from the damage.

 

Freak accident, but kind of reinforces the need for all to practice the muster drill! Attached link to the story FYI.

 

Monarch of the Seas - THE DAMAGE!!

[Cuizer2]

I asked the same question on the RCCL thread. Didnt get any response. Has anyone ever had to get into a lifeboat off of a cruise ship ? I cant see this happening , with all of the elctronics on board to avoid any potential disaster. I think the muster drill is a bit overplayed. They should give you a card , so if you participated once , you just flash the card and get excused from the drill. You will most likely be able to find your muster station within a reasonable time , if a real disaster did strike. Just a thought.

 

Even on ships where the passengers live aboard (The World) a muster drill is held every month.

 

Here in the United States (and I am sure other countries) having the muster drill is a Coast Guard requirement.

[Cuizer2]

The muster drill is a maritime regulation and all passengers must participate before the ship can depart port.

 

The requirement is that the muster drill must take place within 24 hours of leaving port. Most take place just prior to leaving port.

[megr1125]

A shame she hasn't got back on a ship since, but if that was her first cruise then that's one heck of a memory! The story behind the incident is that the ship had made an uscheduled stop in St.Maarten to evacuate a passenger with a medical emergency and stuck the reef on it's way back out to sea. The captain then ran the ship aground intentionally on the sand in shallow waters as it was taking on water from the damage.

 

Freak accident, but kind of reinforces the need for all to practice the muster drill! Attached link to the story FYI.

 

Monarch of the Seas - THE DAMAGE!!

 

that quick thinking may well have saved the ship from sinking, and most likely mitigated the damage.....

 

I don't really mind muster drill.....no it isn't fun, but heck, you only have to do 2 things on a cruise, muster and get off at the end (which i think is even worse than muster!)

 

(as an aside, i do think RCL does a better job than CCL of this, but that may have just been the way it was on our only cruise on CCL's Pride..VERY disorganized....again, our experience only...)

 

ETA: after looking at that link, and the estimated cost of the repairs, all i can say is YIKES!

[HarpHarp]

When I lived in St. Thomas, I sat on my friend's balcony and watched the Angelina Lauro burn to the water line and sink.The passengers and crew were very glad they knew what to do. I also saw an amphibian plane piloted by Charle Blair, Maureen O'Hara's husband, pulled out of the water. He managed to get all his passengers out, but lost his own life.

You bet I go to muster drills and find the emergency exits on a plane or in a hotel.

Read the book "The Survivors Club" and see if you want to join. True, modern boats aren't likely to hit an iceberg like the Titanic, but things may go wrong and you might be glad you had that information from the muster drill fresh in you mind.

[leaveitallbehind]

that quick thinking may well have saved the ship from sinking, and most likely mitigated the damage.....I]

I agree - good thinking by an experienced captain. Not so sure about the intial collision with the reef, however......hate to have to explain that repair bill to my boss!!

[startraveler]

I asked the same question on the RCCL thread. Didnt get any response. Has anyone ever had to get into a lifeboat off of a cruise ship ? I cant see this happening , with all of the elctronics on board to avoid any potential disaster. I think the muster drill is a bit overplayed. They should give you a card , so if you participated once , you just flash the card and get excused from the drill. You will most likely be able to find your muster station within a reasonable time , if a real disaster did strike. Just a thought.

 

There have been Antarctic cruises that have had to abandon ship. And with bigger and bigger ships, your muster station could be anywhere. Not to mention - I think it's Oasis of the Seas - where the life jackets will be stored at the station rather than in the cabin. But without attending muster drill one might not know that, and waste valuable time heading to the cabin.

 

I have been on one ship, which I will not name but one can probably guess from my signature, on which a muster drill was not conducted. Either going or coming there.

[chees]

I'm glad that we now have the muster drill before we depart port. In the old days we had it after we sailed. Would not have worked well on the Oosterdam when they had a fire at 6am of the first morning on board. We lay in bed and listened to the 7 short blasts, which were fortunately NOT followed by the one long blast that means abandon ship. We loitered around in the Pacific for a day with the azipod problem before we continued sailing on one engine. However, I would have hated to see the chaos if we had waiting the 24 hours for the muster drill and had to abandon ship after only 13 hours of sailing, BEFORE we had a drill.

 

Tina

[abb4k]

I consider the muster drill similar to the pre-flight emergency instructions on an airplane.

 

Does ANYONE really need an instruction on how to buckle their seatbelts? I sure hope not.

 

BUT, I always use that time to check if the nearest emergency exit is behind me (preferably I have a seat in the emergency exit row, but otherwise, I always turn around and check).

 

Thankfully have never had to abandon ship, nor abandon an airplane!

[ehfl]

I guess you're the type of person to buckle your seatbelts after getting into an accident.

 

Muster is no big deal...it's a few minutes. On some of the cruise lines, you don't even have to bring your life jacket.

 

You will likely never need to abandon ship...but if you have to, it's good to know where your station is, and it's good to review the procedures every trip.

 

Remember when the Carnival Extacy caught fire, and the passengers had a hard time understanding the accent of the crew? Knowing exactly where your muster station is, and what the procedure is, can make the difference between life and death in a real emergency, where you may not understand what's going on.

 

It's because of Carnival's experience with fire onboard a cruise ship, that their muster drills are longer and more involved than with other cruise lines. You should be thankful that they did not ignore the lessons learned from the fire.

[ROZO'SBEAU]

I am reminded of a muster drill that was held on a short cruise I was on a few years ago. The lifeboat commander in his instruction speech to us related, "I was once asked how often a ship like this sinks...the answer is ... 'only once'."

 

In an early 1970's travel guide book, the late Temple Fielding advised that the lifeboat drill is something everyone needs to seriously pay attention to. Ship travel is not as safe as might be expected. There was a history of many more serious instances than might have been anticipated because there were relatively fewer journeys than on airlines and highways.

 

It is an old mariner's saying that ships are like magnets, they seem to find each other in collisions at sea even though there is seemingly a vast quantity of ocean out there and the chances would seem remote. Andrea Doria-Stockholm for example.

 

I will also add that the silly pictures of us in our life vests the ship's photographer snaps are worth the 20 minute disruption to the cocktail hour.

Bon voyage!

[sunshine426]

Several years ago I was on the Star Princess when she caught on fire. We were called to general quarters around 2am. My husband and I had to go to our muster station by a secondary route as fire doors had closed to the primary. We went down a crew stairwell and actually saw crew donning their personal protective gear to fight the fire. On princess your muster area is not the life boat but public areas. If the decision to abandon ship is made you are then escorted to the appropriate life boat. All in all we felt that the Captain and Crew did an excellent job in this situation. After waiting all night in the muster area, where we had access to bathrooms) those of us whose cabins were not affected were allowed back in. Could everyone have made it to their muster areas without the drills, maybe, but the passengers were pretty darn calm in my area.

 

Another benefit of the drill is for the crew to see what that many people look like coming down the stairs, entering the area... I imagine they drill without passengers as well, but it is good to see how the areas look full of people.

[jp2001]

Here is the story of a ship that sank in Antartica. It held only 154 people and it WAS an expedition ship. I don't know what would have happened if it was a Megaship (not ice-class) holding many thousands of people, including many disabled or low-mobility passengers. I am not sure they could have evacuated safely all these people fast enough. If I go to Antartica, I'll choose my ship very carefully.

 

And I also take the Muster Drill very seriously on all cruises. Oh, and by the way, people talking during the drill, please shut up so we can hear what is said. Thank you in advance!

 

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/11/23/cruise-ship-sink.html

[okgirl]

The muster drill is a maritime regulation and all passengers must participate before the ship can depart port. Not sure how the card idea would work in practicality. The need to participate is not just to be sure you look good in the lifevest - it is also to orient you to where your muster station is on that particular ship, familiarize you with the alarms, etc. The drill you are trying to avoid only takes about 20 minutes - and your lack of familiarity with where you are supposed to go could affect others trying to get there. Modern electronics can't prevent every emergency and although I agree that the chance of a problem is very slim, it still can happen. Just another thought.

 

I have to agree with the OP........after 17 muster drills (and yes I still go to everyone of them and will for as long as I'm required to) I know exactly how to put my lifevest on and where my muster station is and how to respond in an emergency situation.

 

I wish all ships would do muster drills like they did on the CCL Fantasy. Everyone went into the main show lounge where you could be comfortably seated. It was demonstrated how to put your lifevest on and then practiced, all of the instructions were given, then we were escorted to the muster stations. Easy breezy, took about 15 minutes total.

 

I would love to have some dispensation that provided the required evidence that I knew the proper safety procedures.

[Mary Ellen]

I don't mind going to the Muster Drill. Our first cruise was in September 1980. The passengers who boarded as we disembarked, left the ship via the lifeboats - as did the entire crew. The ship did later sink.

 

Over the years we've been on many cruises. I wouldn't consider asking for dispensation thinking 'we know it all'.

[Solo1959]

Aside from being REALLY scary, I can't imagine how an actual emergency could possibly be orderly.

 

The odds of actually being inside your cabin when then call is made are slim. So, you'd have to climb out of the swimming pool, get up from your dinner table, or file out of the big showroom, go to your cabin to retrieve your life vest, and then go to your muster station.

 

And where is my family? Do I look for them? Just go to the cabin?

 

People going to their cabins bumping into people coming from their cabins, confusion on the stairs.

 

And if there's an abandon ship, you can well imagine either the ship is leaning on an angle or filled with smoke while all of this is going on.

 

Yes, I know that the past few incidents have resulted in miraculous numbers of people saved. Yes, I know it probably will work in an emergency. But in my mind's eye, I see being terrorized, being disoriented, masses of people bumping into each other going in different directions.

 

Yeah, I know I'm not the only one, but, I pray this never happens again to anyone.