Muster issue - hope that Celebrity is reading

Den - perhaps I overreacted to the posts. Unfortunately, when you read the written word, it can be easily misconstrued. Some of the posts on this thread sound as if muster isn't important (not DaveKathy) and that was disturbing. In terms of what you posted, I agree that a person can go to muster in a crowded area for a limited time (not 45 minutes) but there needs to be accommodation made for the disabled. Most importantly for me is that all passengers are able to see/hear what is going on so that they make the right decisions in the case of an emergency. In my opinion, it is the people that think that they know everything that could be the people that cause problems in the case of an emergency - simply because they didn't pay attention to what the procedures are.

Jackie

Did you file a complaint about your concerns with the muster drill with GR or the HD while onboard the Infinity? Instead of "hoping that Celebrity is reading" CC.

We filed in writing on the ship about our overall experience , and also the over the top demeanor of the Sec Officer in charge. Obviously not a good fit for the job!

The follow year, same ship, we were lucky enough to be in Michaels with a seat..still crowded but you could breathe better although it was still chaotic and ran late

Anyhow this topic is fairly aired..and done.

...davekathy - no idea why you are continuing to bash me on this thread. The thread is meant to be helpful and these are our experiences and feelings -- it is not necessary to agree with me but being snarky isn't going to help anyone...

We filed in writing on the ship about our overall experience , and also the over the top demeanor of the Sec Officer in charge. Obviously not a good fit for the job!

 

The follow year, same ship, we were lucky enough to be in Michaels with a seat..still crowded but you could breathe better although it was still chaotic and ran late

 

Anyhow this topic is fairly aired..and done.

At least you elected to elevate your complaint and it was documented while you were onboard. Thank you. If more of us did that possibly (?) something will get fixed and make it better for all of us in the future. Sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

While I am a big proponent of reporting things while onboard the ship, we had not sailed on Celebrity previously - was not familiar with what the procedures were and whether or not this was "normal" for Celebrity. At that point of our cruise, we spent a half an hour trying to get to the computer room and kept hitting dead ends (I know - it is easy to get to but for a newbie - not used to large ships, it was confusing). So, the bottom line is that I didn't mention it while onboard but did in my comments after the cruise.

Having cruised many times with many cruise lines, I have found it standard that all muster stations are pretty bad.

Actually, the muster stations on Princess were quite comfortable. However, the muster drill is way at the bottom of the list of items that my wife and I consider when selecting a cruise. That is why our next five cruises will be on Celebrity, not Princess!

Den - perhaps I overreacted to the posts. Unfortunately, when you read the written word, it can be easily misconstrued. Some of the posts on this thread sound as if muster isn't important (not DaveKathy) and that was disturbing. In terms of what you posted, I agree that a person can go to muster in a crowded area for a limited time (not 45 minutes) but there needs to be accommodation made for the disabled. Most importantly for me is that all passengers are able to see/hear what is going on so that they make the right decisions in the case of an emergency. In my opinion, it is the people that think that they know everything that could be the people that cause problems in the case of an emergency - simply because they didn't pay attention to what the procedures are.

 

Jackie

Jackie - I agree wholeheartedly that the written word can be misunderstood very easily. No intonation or seeing how people are saying sometihing, and of course the writer doesn’t see the reactions and can respond. Done it more than a few times of stating an opinon that hurt someone’s feelings unintionally.....at least that time.

By the way, getting back on subject: You’ve made Excellent observations.

Den

Just returned from our first Celebrity cruise and enjoyed it overall. The only reason for writing this is to say how terrible (and possibly dangerous) that the muster that we attended was. We have close to 50 cruises under our belts - almost all of them on premium-plus and luxury lines and have never experienced anything like this.

 

The lounge where it was held was full beyond capacity. Not only could we not sit down, we could barely stand -- we were like a room full of sardines. Could not see or hear much. Our biggest concern was the lack of air in the room. Someone did say that muster was taking longer than normal but that does not excuse the uncomfortability that Celebrity put their passengers through. A couple of people almost passed out (it was also extremely warm) and a few kind hearted people gave up their seats for these people.

 

As we all know, muster is suppose to be about safety but there was nothing safe about the environment where the muster for many of us was held. The room was definitely over capacity and difficult to breathe in.

Same complaint on my last Celebrity cruise .

The only remark I can add to these comments is....and has been for almost all of our cruises....what if there was a genuine emergency. With all the people in any of the muster rooms, and the congestion with all of us leaving the muster drills at once...can you imagine what a real muster and exit to the boats would be like??? I for one would not be concerning myself with a 'seat' to view a video, but a place by the door to scope out the quickest exit. I do think they've tried to make the musters pleasurable by entertaining us with a video, but put same video on the stateroom TV. A good computer program can tell if the cabin has viewed the video. If it comes up they haven't accessed, then make a quick visit to remind them.I still think the best way, and shortest time, to handle these musters is to stand near the boat(s, hopefully) to take us away from the ship without the panic in a muster room to get there. JMHO.

The only remark I can add to these comments is....and has been for almost all of our cruises....what if there was a genuine emergency. With all the people in any of the muster rooms, and the congestion with all of us leaving the muster drills at once...can you imagine what a real muster and exit to the boats would be like??? I for one would not be concerning myself with a 'seat' to view a video, but a place by the door to scope out the quickest exit. I do think they've tried to make the musters pleasurable by entertaining us with a video, but put same video on the stateroom TV. A good computer program can tell if the cabin has viewed the video. If it comes up they haven't accessed, then make a quick visit to remind them.I still think the best way, and shortest time, to handle these musters is to stand near the boat(s, hopefully) to take us away from the ship without the panic in a muster room to get there. JMHO.

Excellent idea!

Again, the muster is not really about getting to the boat, but to get the passengers into a controlled location and accounted for.

Just returned from our first Celebrity cruise and enjoyed it overall. The only reason for writing this is to say how terrible (and possibly dangerous) that the muster that we attended was. We have close to 50 cruises under our belts - almost all of them on premium-plus and luxury lines and have never experienced anything like this.

 

The lounge where it was held was full beyond capacity. Not only could we not sit down, we could barely stand -- we were like a room full of sardines. Could not see or hear much. Our biggest concern was the lack of air in the room. Someone did say that muster was taking longer than normal but that does not excuse the uncomfortability that Celebrity put their passengers through. A couple of people almost passed out (it was also extremely warm) and a few kind hearted people gave up their seats for these people.

 

As we all know, muster is suppose to be about safety but there was nothing safe about the environment where the muster for many of us was held. The room was definitely over capacity and difficult to breathe in.

Wow Jackie,that sounds like an awful experience. We typically go in mostly S class ships which we prefer but have been on a few aM class as well, and have never had this experience. Each cabin was assigned to an area and we were always seated watching a video.

Somsorrybthis was your experience.

Wendy

Again, the muster is not really about getting to the boat, but to get the passengers into a controlled location and accounted for.

The 'controlled environment' could (and maybe should) be as near the 'boat' as possible. Not in a room down the deck where a horde of people will be rushing out and trample everyone in their way to get to the boat. I just think removing that step may save lives and get one to the point faster where they need to be. They can still be accounted for as they pass through the door leading to the deck. By the way the message is lost in the video. Many don't take it seriously. If they're standing on the deck beside the boat they may see how important it is to follow along. I know it's been mentioned there no longer is enough room to accommodate all that the boats will hold with the shortage of deck space. i wonder if stopping this video and just getting to 'brass tacks' delivering the message may hold cruisers attention. The video extends the time spent in the 'room' and the meaning of the message following seems to be lost.

The 'controlled environment' could (and maybe should) be as near the 'boat' as possible. Not in a room down the deck where a horde of people will be rushing out and trample everyone in their way to get to the boat. I just think removing that step may save lives and get one to the point faster where they need to be. They can still be accounted for as they pass through the door leading to the deck. By the way the message is lost in the video. Many don't take it seriously. If they're standing on the deck beside the boat they may see how important it is to follow along. I know it's been mentioned there no longer is enough room to accommodate all that the boats will hold with the shortage of deck space. i wonder if stopping this video and just getting to 'brass tacks' delivering the message may hold cruisers attention. The video extends the time spent in the 'room' and the meaning of the message following seems to be lost.

Again, there are far more instances where the passengers are mustered in an emergency and then allowed to return to "normal" activities for the rest of the cruise then there are where the Captain even considered evacuating the ship, let alone actually evacuating. So, in a fire, for instance, the passengers will be "corralled" in their muster locations, perhaps for hours, while the fire is controlled and extinguished, and there is no need for the passengers to "rush and trample" out of the muster station. The second function of the muster is to have the passengers in a controlled area so the emergency teams don't waste time searching for passengers, or herding them again out of the emergency zone.

Secondly, even in a situation where the Captain decides to evacuate the ship, this would not be done in one "stampede" out of the muster station to the boats, but in groups to fill a boat at a time. If you did as you want, and "account" for passengers as they pass out the doors onto deck, does this mean that the passengers will wait on an outdoor deck that doesn't have the space to accommodate them all, for hours on end before either being sent back to their cabins or into the boats. Use of the indoor muster allows only a limited number of boat groups to be on deck at one time, allowing for orderly loading of the boats, which is going to be problematic at best, and chaos if done as you describe.

I personally don't believe that the video is useful, and most of the "information" is irrelevant to the muster, but the lines have seen that attention is not being paid at drill, and this is one attempt at improving that situation. Whether it is effective or not, is not really for you or me to decide, but for those who study preparedness training and crowd management training.

When you say, that removing the indoor muster location, and "getting people to the point faster where they need to be", I will counter that the muster location, not the boats, is where they need to be, since again, the muster is about emergencies not necessarily about evacuating the ship.

Just returned from our first Celebrity cruise and enjoyed it overall. The only reason for writing this is to say how terrible (and possibly dangerous) that the muster that we attended was. We have close to 50 cruises under our belts - almost all of them on premium-plus and luxury lines and have never experienced anything like this.

 

The lounge where it was held was full beyond capacity. Not only could we not sit down, we could barely stand -- we were like a room full of sardines. Could not see or hear much. Our biggest concern was the lack of air in the room. Someone did say that muster was taking longer than normal but that does not excuse the uncomfortability that Celebrity put their passengers through. A couple of people almost passed out (it was also extremely warm) and a few kind hearted people gave up their seats for these people.

 

As we all know, muster is suppose to be about safety but there was nothing safe about the environment where the muster for many of us was held. The room was definitely over capacity and difficult to breathe in.

So dramatic

...and they played a stupid movie. It had no value if there came to an emergency. Really poor.

Like a James Bond movie thing, yes? Ugh. RIDICULOUS. It was almost laughable if it hadn't been so sad, and also so serious an issue. Safety is nothing to be taken lightly. We lost interest quickly and could see others around the room felt the same way. Just give me the facts in a simple format, tell me what to do, and comfort me with the fact that when I am screaming my head off in a real emergency, the calm competent crew will know exactly what to do. :)

I have always found that the emergency info on the back of the cabin door to be the most informative about emergencies. It gives all the necessary info including two emergency routes for getting from your cabin to the muster station. Take a photo with your phone and always be prepared wherever you are on the ship.

"Maybe people should have watched and listened to that stupid movie."

We both found the movie to be totally a waste of time on Solstice in August.. In the Rendezvous Lounge we could not even see it. We got a better view through the window to a screen downstairs. People talking made the sound unhearable. Awful!

Recent neg muster drill review...Pacific Coastal..

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2683935

See link , post #1, "Embarkation"

Can't you watch the movie on the television in the room? I feel like that's been an option in the past (not as a replacement for attending muster, though).

Can't you watch the movie on the television in the room? I feel like that's been an option in the past (not as a replacement for attending muster, though).

It is possible to watch on your stateroom TV (not instead of muster, but in addition to muster). Realistically however just how many people do this considering the amount of complaining about muster drills I've heard over the years. Just give me the relevant and important information at the drill that I can see, hear and remember. Please don't "cutesy it up" with a badly done comedic movie that I can't see or hear during muster because the screen is dimmed by sunlight in a venue not conducive to viewing. The information is too important. Also, don't rely on passengers doing the right thing when the safety information at muster can't be viewed as it should and viewing it in their staterooms. Present the information clearly, succinctly without burying the message in a comedic movie at the muster drill. Making a comedic movie imparts the message that the safety message is a joke. It's no joke. Just my two cents. Sorry for the mini rant (but not very).

The movie is just a time filler while they check the passenger lists to make sure they know who didn't show up where they were supposed to be. I think people are overthinking the purpose of the process.

The movie is just a time filler while they check the passenger lists to make sure they know who didn't show up where they were supposed to be. I think people are overthinking the purpose of the process.

If that were true they wouldn't wait to show the movie until the required number were there. The purpose of the process is a instructive safety drill, not entertainment. Nothing to think about IMHO.

Very surprised, and the first I've ever heard of where a ship has changed muster stations during it's service life. The cost to do this is quite high (technical studies, regulatory approvals, then changing all signage and documentation). Were the ships significantly changed over the life (added cabins, etc)?

 

And many ships do use a mixture of inside and outdoor muster locations.

 

While those "surprises" are common for crew drills, I've not seen those done during passenger drills, since it would involve impacting untrained guests.

My experience is similar to Cirdan’s. On my first cruise, Celebrity Millennium in 1996, we were required to retrieve life jackets from our cabin, put them on, and report to a muster station on deck (outside). I don’t believe the reason for the later change to the muster stations on the M-class ships was due to ship modifications. I think it was simply a fleet wide change, possibly because the older drill protocol would have been more difficult on the newer S-class ships.

Several people have posted comments about the duration of their muster drills. I have also experienced two very long (approximately 45 minutes) muster drills. In each case, the reason for the lengthy delay was that many passengers sauntered in 10 minutes late, or didn’t show up at all. Others wouldn’t stop talking, which made it difficult for the rest of us to hear the crew. I realize that some of you may have encountered unprepared and disorganized crew at Celebrity muster drills, but I have not. The problems I have encountered have been strictly due to the inconsiderate behavior of fellow passengers.