Rescue at Sea - Royal Princess - 3 Feb 16

We were scheduled to arrive in Granada today at 12:00pm, so were surprised to notice thrusters being activated at about 6:45am. Upon investigation we learned the crew was in the midst of assisting a disabled sailboat off the starboard side of the Royal.

The Captain announced the Staff Engineer was attempting to repair the sailboat’s engine. Unfortunately he was not successful and the sailboat’s owner made the decision to abandon his boat.

The owner and a passenger were transferred to the Royal.

As this event occurred about five hours before our scheduled arrival in Grenada, I figure we were about 80 nm west of our destination. We’ll be arriving 90 minutes late in Grenada.

Thank you for posting and the pics. Great visual. Beautiful sailboat, but glad Princess was there to assist, try repairs and rescue them.

Good for the Royal and her captain. I am glad the passengers of the sailboat are safe.

I hope you have a great day in Grenada, Lew!

I am missing the Royal this year...

Lew, thanks for the post…great pics…

I wonder what will happen to the sail boat?

I wonder what will happen to the sail boat?

Apparently the sailboat's owner has more money than sailing ability. Or maybe he has no money and is wanting to collect insurance. If he can't sail a sailboat without using the engine, he should not own it. If he lacked enough provisions to last until he could sail to a port, I am sure he could have gotten them from the cruise ship.

I believe I read once that a vessel abandoned at sea can be salvaged by whoever finds it without any compensation to the owner who abandoned it.

I would be that once the word gets out about the position of the abandoned boat, there will be a rush of people searching for it. Finds like this are probably a blessing to the drug runners.

Very interesting Lew. Thank you for the report, and thank you for the great pics.

I have to ask, though, do you know if there was something else wrong other than engine failure? It's a sailboat. Why could it not sail to a port? I agree that an engine is useful navigating into a harbor. However, on arrival it seems to me they could have radioed for a tow.

I actually can think of a few things that would force them into abandonment. It just seems that engine failure alone would not force that decision.

Expiring minds want to know.

Thanks for the information Lew...and great pictures! Hope you and Nan aren't missing me too much :)

I hope Princess sends the sailboat owner a bill :p

I wonder what will happen to the sail boat?

Apparently the sailboat's owner has more money than sailing ability. Or maybe he has no money and is wanting to collect insurance. If he can't sail a sailboat without using the engine, he should not own it. If he lacked enough provisions to last until he could sail to a port, I am sure he could have gotten them from the cruise ship.

I believe I read once that a vessel abandoned at sea can be salvaged by whoever finds it without any compensation to the owner who abandoned it.

I would be that once the word gets out about the position of the abandoned boat, there will be a rush of people searching for it. Finds like this are probably a blessing to the drug runners.

Exactly!

We have been on two cruises on which we were rescuers. On one, we were in the dining room commenting on the full moon on the port side of the ship. A few minutes later, the full moon was on the starboard side of the ship. That is when we learned that we had turned around to rescue someone.

There were 3 men in one of the rescues. They were brought onboard the cruise ship and given a suite. They were quite the celebrities on the ship. Passengers were buying them drinks and partying the night away. So, glad that we could be of help.

Think this was wonderful. A few years ago on the Royal coming from Canada to NY, there was an announcement for man overboard (not a drill). turns out no one was overboard, they think someone mistook an orange buoy for a life jacket.

Anyhow, what I wanted to say was how impressed I was with the process when things like this happen. Bravo Princess Cruise Line

I think it is Maritime Law...if a vessel is in distress you have to do everything you can to rescue someone.

Very interesting Lew. Thank you for the report, and thank you for the great pics.

 

I have to ask, though, do you know if there was something else wrong other than engine failure? It's a sailboat. Why could it not sail to a port? I agree that an engine is useful navigating into a harbor. However, on arrival it seems to me they could have radioed for a tow.

 

I actually can think of a few things that would force them into abandonment. It just seems that engine failure alone would not force that decision.

 

Expiring minds want to know.

I was wondering the same thing.

Thanks for the update.

Lucky I was not on board. I would have jumped ship, salvaged the boat, sailed it to the nearest port and be looking for a slip to keep her in! Makes no sense! I've owned SAIL boats all of my life. A medical emergency I get. A mechanical breakdown??? Something fishy here.

Thanks for posting, Lew. Great picture:)

Watched rescue from our balcony. Sails were completely tattered and useless. They had been adrift for over two days.

Lucky I was not on board. I would have jumped ship, salvaged the boat, sailed it to the nearest port and be looking for a slip to keep her in! Makes no sense! I've owned SAIL boats all of my life. A medical emergency I get. A mechanical breakdown??? Something fishy here.

No kidding! That is a nice boat. I think you and I would be co owners or drawing straws.

Thanks for sharing. Very interesting with great pics. I'm not a sailor, so forgive me for the dumb question: Would you leave the sails up when abandoning a sailing vessel? Seems to me that it would drift far less with a better chance of recovery if the sails were taken down. :confused:

Watched rescue from our balcony. Sails were completely tattered and useless. They had been adrift for over two days.

That explains a lot. Thank you, Tiffany.

I think it is Maritime Law...if a vessel is in distress you have to do everything you can to rescue someone.

Not quite. A ship must respond to a distress call, but the Captain is not required to offer any assistance if it places his ship, crew, or cargo (passengers) at risk. As others have said, my first thought is that the rigging is still intact, and he is 90 miles (by the OP's calculations) from a port. Unless the ship was taking on water at a prodigious rate, there was really no need to abandon the boat, and the Captain was under no obligation to take them onboard.

Thanks for posting this Lew. Kudos to the crew for what they did.....:):):)

Bob

I wonder what will happen to the sail boat?

It looked like a beautiful boat. I was wondering the same thing.

Interesting dilemma: the sails are shredded and the kicker is dead. But most sailboats carry more than just the main and jib so there should be more bags of sail on board - or did those get eaten up as well. I.e. couldn't they make headway with a spinnaker or small jib or whatever is left?

Thanks for sharing. Very interesting with great pics. I'm not a sailor, so forgive me for the dumb question: Would you leave the sails up when abandoning a sailing vessel? Seems to me that it would drift far less with a better chance of recovery if the sails were taken down. :confused:

Or easier to locate with sails up?