Carnival Cruise Ship
 

I am so glad all those poor people are back on dry land and getting food and SHOWERS!

Here's what baffles me...why didn't Carnival send out another ship when all this first happened and transfer the passengers? Why did they leave them on that nasty ship for days on end in those filthy conditions? How hard would it have been to do that?

I read this morning that the crew quickly picked up all the mattresses on the deck and "suddenly found food they didn't know they had" and set out a small buffet table right before they pulled into Alabama. Hmmm...

While I fully sympathize with the plight of the passengers, cruise lines do not have spare ships sitting around to quickly launch for a rescue.

:agree:

Although it seems like it makes sense to do something other than what the cruise line did, the logistics of sending out another ship is just not feasible.

What about the coast guard sending another ship out?

If I was the CEO of Carnival, I would have rather of forfeited the income from a cancelled cruise to use that ship for rescue than to have dealt with not only the bad publicity from this but, the lawsuits you know will be forthcoming.

The logistics of moving 4,000+ passengers and crew would have been a nightmare scenario. It would only have been possible to move passengers from one ship to another by tender, how many tenders would be needed to accomplish this, how long would they take to get to the ship? Can you imagine trying to remove passengers from a ship of that size whilst the ship is being moved by the windy conditions in the Gulf? How would you have removed infirm passengers, people confined to wheel chairs, young children etc. etc? I don't like getting on and off tenders when you are in port and the ship is tied up, let alone one that is drifting around.

These cruise companies are experts at their business, and I know it was miserable conditions for these poor people, but I don't think there was an alternative unless the ship was sinking, then things would have been very different.

Madeline is 100% correct in her posting that it is just too dangereous to transfer passengers from one ship to another while in open seas.

I was on a tender once in Cozumel going from shore back to the ship. The tender engine quit and we had to transfer in the rather choppy harbor in Cozumel from one tender to another - before our powerless one hit some huge rocks! That was difficult enough to do and I can see how it would have been so much more dangerous going in a lifeboat from one ship to another on the open sea.

Carnival did all they could do in those terrible conditions. Remember, what you hear or what is reported is just one side. As someone once said, there are 3 sides to a story - your side, their side, and THE TRUTH. Lots of these stories are going to be exaggerated for the sake of possible lawsuits, etc. It still had to be terrible to be in such filth and no running water, etc for that time period.

It is not going to deter me from my future cruising - but I like Celebrity and not Carnival.

I am also sure that the Carnival CEO was in constant touch with the Coast Guard and any other Government Agency in the event of needing emergency help. Also, do people really think that these poor people were left floating around for days in filthy conditions when there was something anyone could have done. I am sure he and his Board of Directors sat there day after day hearing the kaching kaching of the waiting Attorney's cash registers!

My husband and I cruise at least 3 x a year --- for the last three years--we have only cruised Carnival and go out of Canaveral because of the closeness to The Villages. I can't imagine what the passengers went through but it was an accident and under the circumstances they handled it as best they could. I know the passengers will be compensated with full refund, another cruise for free and 500.00 but I would like to hear that Carnival is doing something for the crew as well. Can you imagine what they went through?---they already work from early morning to late at night when the cruise is going smoothly. Their cabins are either deck 0 or 1---I am sure they did not have the option to sleep on the deck--which I am sure wasn't very comfortable. I know the passengers had a horrible experience but for some reason, I think of the crew. We have thoroughly enjoyed each and every cruise --just got off the Carnival Dream 2/9---our 12th with Carnival and a good part of our enjoyment is the friendliness and service we receive from the crew.

And to add insult to injury, I just read that one of the buses that was carrying some of the ill-fated passengers from Mobile to New Orleans last nite had their bus break down somewhere en-route to New Orleans.

Those poor folks must have been thinking & saying: What next?

Anyone who has served in the Navy will tell you that transferring people at sea between ships is a dangerous evolution. Even for trained people. Attempting to do that with civilians and a crew who has not trained to do that would lead to disaster. The bottom line is that the passengers were in no immediate danger, only uncomfortable. Carnival and the Coast Guard did the right thing.

I read on article of this and it was so disgusting with what the passengers had to put up with.

Truly, a trip from He**.

I heard on the noon news that Carnival knew this ship needed repairs 2 weeks before this cruise but sent it out anyway.

Oh Oh...

If this turns out to be true, the passengers should really be outraged and the lawyers are probably already lined up.

we must all keep in mind that our only source of information is the main stream media and they are only to report what is bad or disgusting or will suck in listeners/readers.

And when they interview the passenger we all know they will seek out the disgusting most sensationalizing interviewees.......

My guess is that like most things in life the other 80-90% that were OK will never...EVER.... be heard. And yes, none of us would opt to trade with even the OK folks on that adventure.

Take, as usual, the media with a grain of salt. Their job is to be first....not accurate.

btk

Actually, most of the folks I saw interviewed were simply grateful to have survived the
experience and not sensational at all.

I'm guessing that the ambulance chasers were lining up the minute the first reports of the fire went out.

I heard the cruise lines are going to charge a post trip premium for the top side cabins when the ship rolls over.

Just taking on fuel in the middle of the Indian Ocean was dangerous aboard my ship, let alone moving people to other boats w/ all their luggage. That would have been out of the question!!

I was listening to Bud Headinger on his morning show on the radio and he was very sure that the passengers should have had the option of leaving on the life-boats. I don't think that would have been safe. I think the life boats are only for a disaster, when the ship is in danger of sinking. Is that what you meant by transferring? Using life boats?

Why weren't supplies brought in? If the food was reduced to onion sandwiches and dirty water, why didn't the cruise line drop uncontaminated food and water for these people if getting them off the ship wasn't an option?

I also heard tonight that the first lawsuit has been filed. Imagine that!

I was on a ship that had a fire back in the mid 80's
 

I Was on the QE2 when there was an electrical fire in the boiler room. I had just gone down to get a sweater (air conditioning at bingo was cold) and the water tight doors closed and I was trapped and had to climb up all those stairs to reach the deck. We were becalmed for two days in the Med but they airlifted huge generators and set them up to give extra power so even though we were not going anywhere we still had everything working. I can't help but wonder why Carnival didn't do the same.

It was an illfated trip as on the crossing back to NY we ran into a huricane in the north atlantic and because we were running late the captain decided to plow through instead of going around we had waves over the top of the ship that flooded water every where. We didn't go on Cunard again. However we took 5 cruises after that but now that my favorite line was merged into Holland America another carnival owned line I don't know if we will again.

My guess is....there is very limited litigation as a result of such a sad story...one of the many reasons that these ships are registered abroad is that they are protected from such suits...otherwise you would have passengers suing the cruiseline for stuff like bad food.
I'm sure we will find out...I am not an attorney but I am sure someone here knows about this stuff.

Still, $500 plus a free cruise if they they ever dare to set foot on one again seems like an insult. Carnival would have created a lot more goodwill if they made it $5000, at least people might have felt somewhat compensated for their troubles.

As parents of a senior at Maine Maritime Academy, we were invited to do the last leg of their training cruise, which involved riding a tug out to their 500-foot training vessel and transferring onto it in choppy Penobscot Bay. It was one hairy experience. There is that one point where you have to step from one rolling boat onto the steps leading up the side of the ship. Took an hour to get 50 people on board the ship. I just can't imagine getting 4000 people transferred from one ship to another.

Good luck with the sharks (lawyers), you do sign a contract. :ho:

Ticket Contract | Legal | Carnival Cruise Lines

While 5 days in miserable conditions is no picnic, those who came to America centuries ago had it MUCH worse. They would probably think of us as a bunch of wimps.

Amen to this! I have also been concerned about the crew and their conditions. Also, let's just give some air time to the millions of people in 3rd world countries who live like this EVERY day of their lives? At least the passengers on the ship knew that their experience would end soon. I hope at least someone used this experience to count their blessings for the conditions they live in during their regular lives and think about those who don't have the option to "just leave".

I am curious...when the company, in this case tries to do what is right...money back...provide transportation to get you home (planes, trains, automobiles)....puts you up in a hotel...gives you $500 in cash....all an attempt to right the wrong of an accident or what ever that was beyond their control (until PROVEN otherwise)......

how is it that more cash makes it a better deal? No matter how much money is offerred the ordeal cannot be erased. All the company can do is try their best to get one back to square one as best as possible.

I fear our litigious society is so geared to sue who ever for what ever that reality plays no part what so ever. Far too many lawyers who are ready to fatten their fee by getting as many dollars as possible. And when that gets done the icident is still what it is/was.

The go for the big bucks is just another opening for opportunists ready to milk the system.....it is an unfortunate by product of our current way of life.

In my opinion as a very frequent traveler my entire life, Carnival reacted with an appropriate spirit and intent to make a bad situation as good as possible.

Could they have done other things....who knows. The game is always easier to play from the bleachers or the day after isn't it?:D

btk

bad mgmt
 

This is NOT the first time for Carnival. They seem to make national headlines every couple of years with these types of issues. I did hear passengers interviewed say they thought the crew did a stellar job, but they only had negative things to say regarding carnival's management.

You would think that these cruise lines would take the responsibility for the well being of 4,000 plus people (and thousands more on the new giant ships) when they haul them off to the middle of nowhere and far from emergency services. A backup generator system with appropriate switching gear sufficient to handle the needs of the ship's infrastructure could easily be installed in an isolated area somewhere on board the ship. Of course that would take away several passenger cabins and loss of revenue. But, how much do these awful incidents cost the the reputation of the ship lines. It seems that total failure of a ship's power system happens every few years so maybe a back-up system is needed.

I've never been on a cruise and such incidents and lack of concern for the passengers reinforces my avoidance of cruising. When pressured by my wife and friends to try a cruise all I have to do is haul out the pictures of people sleeping under sheet tents, pooping in plastic bags, and standing in line for peanut butter sandwiches.:(
Real fun on the high seas. I think not.

I cannot see how you can blame Carnival corporate management for an engine fire that knocked out power. Receiving a full refund, a free future cruise, hotel and transporation back to the home port, and $500 was basically all one could expect to be possible. What else could be expected?

If you are also referring to the Costa Concordia that sank off of Italy, that was not Carnival management but the actions of a single person (the inept captain).

Personally, I would not sail Carnival because I prefer the luxury of Celebrity but I do not blame Carnival corporate management for these incidents.

Carnival is 100% to blame for this. They knew 2 months ago there was mechanical problems in the engine that could cause a fire at some point. They continued to send that cruise ship out to make a buck and look where it got them.

I have been following the Carnival cruise ship issue especially since we cruise Carnival all the time. Please let me know where the article is about the mechanical problem in the engine 2 months ago. Would really like to read it. Thanks

2 ships floating in the gulf one under steerage one adrift side by side transferring passengers
Isn't going to happen .

Can you give some proof to this charge?

Just how can you 'KNOW" this? Are you the ship's Chief Engineer or a USCG inspector with direct knowledge of the ship's records?

In the comments section below the story, some people who were on those cruises report being told of a propulsion problem that had been fixed and inspected prior to sailing but that there would/may be a speed limitation.

I'm sure we'll hear lots of conflicting stories about this incident.

In a much smaller context many years ago I used to make extra money on the weekends by driving Greyhound-sized charter buses on trips. We were based in upstate NY and used to make a lot of runs to NYC for Yankees or Giants games and Manhattan shopping. We also did a lot of weekend trips to the casinos in Atlantic City.

Being that the buses were used in interstate commerce the maintence records of the bus were in a binder on board. Before ever moving the bus you are required by federal law to make a full pre-trip inspection and check the maintenence records before taking the bus out on the road to carry passengers. If things were not right, we refused the bus. Now any good driver would do those inspections even if there wasn't a law to require it. I don't know any driver who would want the responsibility of 40 passengers knowing that you were driving a machine with unfixed problems. Occasionally despite our best efforts sometimes a bus would break down on a trip. It makes for a lousy time. But Sewage happens.

Have you ever had your car break down on the road even though you gave it reasonable care? Sewage happens.

Take that into a larger context, how many times have you had to wait at an airport because the plane's captain found something that MIGHT cause a problem and refused to take the plane?

A ship's master is no different. I cannot believe that a ship's captain is going to put out to sea KNOWING that his boat has problems and he's taking a chance for the liability of thousands of people. And, Carnival or any other company knows their liability if they send out something that they KNOW to be unfit for operation. Companies like Carnival are in business to make money..not pay lawyers to defend them and pay out judgements for faulty operation.

Yes, there was that dolt at the helm of that Italian liner a year or so ago, but you do not hear many stories of that magnitude.

If the captain and the company knowingly sent out a ship that was not seaworthy you are talking about possible criminal charges. I really doubt that this was the case. Sewage happens. It made for a terrible situation. I think Carnival and the ship's captain did the best they could under the circumstances.

:agree: