Cruise ship loses engine power in heavy seas
- Thread starter rafterman
- Start date
This brings up an issue I have with cruises.
We try to accommodate all kinds of people. Fine. On cruises there are babies, children, teenagers, adult, seniors, disabled without wheelchairs, with wheelchairs, overweight, blind, deaf, etc. Fine.
But how far should something like a cruise ship go in accommodating EVERYBODY? This ship was rocking from side to side. Huge waves, and they couldn't even get to their muster stations and launch lifeboats. So helicopters were brought in. It was close enough to the shore that they knew where it was and could actually see the ship. Hence helicopters knew where they were going.
Okay, add another 100 miles to the distance out in the Atlantic (or whichever ocean it is out there). And substitute the Harmony of the Seas instead of the Viking Sky. They evacuated those with disabilities and injuries first. If no helicopters, who is going to evacuate the disabled, blind, deaf, those with walkers, dogs, babies off the ship? I don't think that a cruise ship in the middle of nowhere is the place for those who cannot physically get themselves to a lifeboat and/or put on a life-jacket and jump off the ship it the place to be. Babies and children can be carried so that isn't so big a problem. But the overweight? I realize that a lot of their income also comes from retirees since they are the only ones who can afford the larger suites, alcohol, and other services on board (watches, artwork, casinos, etc).
We try to accommodate all kinds of people. Fine. On cruises there are babies, children, teenagers, adult, seniors, disabled without wheelchairs, with wheelchairs, overweight, blind, deaf, etc. Fine.
But how far should something like a cruise ship go in accommodating EVERYBODY? This ship was rocking from side to side. Huge waves, and they couldn't even get to their muster stations and launch lifeboats. So helicopters were brought in. It was close enough to the shore that they knew where it was and could actually see the ship. Hence helicopters knew where they were going.
Okay, add another 100 miles to the distance out in the Atlantic (or whichever ocean it is out there). And substitute the Harmony of the Seas instead of the Viking Sky. They evacuated those with disabilities and injuries first. If no helicopters, who is going to evacuate the disabled, blind, deaf, those with walkers, dogs, babies off the ship? I don't think that a cruise ship in the middle of nowhere is the place for those who cannot physically get themselves to a lifeboat and/or put on a life-jacket and jump off the ship it the place to be. Babies and children can be carried so that isn't so big a problem. But the overweight? I realize that a lot of their income also comes from retirees since they are the only ones who can afford the larger suites, alcohol, and other services on board (watches, artwork, casinos, etc).
