Be Truthful Now,who Really Skips Muster Drills?

[babsee101]

[quote name='kennicott']Finding of the Court:

Question Number 5 (c)

Had a boat drill been held on board, and if so, when?
Answer (c) No

Recommendations:

16. That the men who are to man the boats should have more frequent drills than hitherto. That in all ships a boat drill, a fire-drill, a fire-drill and a watertight door drill should be held as soon as possible after leaving the original port of departure and at convenient intervals of not less than once a week during the voyage. Such drills to be recorded in the official log.


30th July 1912 by: British Board of Trade, Wreck Commisioner, Right Honourable, Lord Mersey

Concerning: loss of the RMS “Titanic”[/QUOTE]

Nuff said!

I have never cruised but will attend my first drill and all afterwards. I would hate to be the confused disoriented passenger (who did not attend the drill) who gets in the way in an emergency and causes someone who did follow the rules to not make it off the ship!

[pamwinn]

It's probably considered strange by many but I enjoy the muster drills. We usually have our first drink of the cruise with us and are very giddy. It's fun to watch people who have never put on a life jacket and twice we've made a new set of friends at the drill. :)

[cruzinchris]

The only time that DH and I skipped muster was last year on the [i]Grand. [/i]We didn't arrive at the pier until 4:05 - along with several hundred passengers for the [i]Grand [/i]and the [i]Coral [/i]who had also flown into Miami for Sunday sailings.

Muster was announced as were walking up the gangway, and we were anxious to get to our stateroom. By the time our stateroom steward greeted us, the drill had begun. Having been on the [i]Star[/i] and the [i]Golden,[/i] we knew the layout of the ship and felt that we could undergo muster just this once while getting settled in our room. We located our lifevests in the closet and studied the instructions about our muster location and knew that we would walk through it eventually when we explored the ship.

A big plus for [i]Princess[/i] is that they refrain from using muster as a "Kodak moment." We wondered why other lines used the serious evacuation procedure as an opportunity to have passengers pose for photos. Go figure.

We'll definitely attend the muster drill on the [i]Caribbean Princess[/i] on Saturday - new ship with additional passengers.
[i]Chris[/i]

[WeBeGone]

We always attend, drinks in hand, just to watch the show. We scope out the people who put on the lifejackets when the crew says "watch only" so we know who to avoid during the cruise.

[Deloresgardella]

I always attend the muster drill. I just figured it was something you are obligated to do. I have never even considered missing it.

[Toto2Kansas]

OK, I will admit it. ON one ship that we had sailed on before I slipped the room steward $5 so she could overlook us at muster drill time. I knew where to go and when to go and was tired and just wasn't wanting to sit around watching the whole thing again. Me Bad!

[BroncosCruiser]

[quote name='tom-n-jules']Never missed a muster, never would. To heck with the cruiseline making it mandatory - it's self-preservation!!

I fly constantly on business; half-a-million miles plus over 5 years, and I [b]still [/b] review the exits on the diagram card in reference to where I'm sitting on every flight, every plane I take.[/QUOTE]

When I flew for work (100,000 miles/year) I did the same thing. Every time I get in an airplane, I check-out where the nearest exits are, where I am, and count how many rows it will take to get out both forwards and backwards. The odds are very, very low I will ever need that information. But if I ever need it, it might be the difference between life and death. And I want to give myself the best chance of making it out.

I look at all of these safety drills (like fire drills, musters, etc.) not as something I [b]have[/b] to do, but an opportunity to learn/reinforce behavior to save myself. The more times you practice something, the more likely you are to remember it when the situation is very stressful.

[calikak]

[quote name='WeBeGone']We always attend, drinks in hand, just to watch the show. We scope out the people who put on the lifejackets when the crew says "watch only" so we know who to avoid during the cruise.[/QUOTE]

I find that muster drill isn't a chore at all if you've got a drink in hand. :D

[Hei1980]

I was recovering from radiation treatments for breast cancer, the safety drill wasn't high on my list. Being bone tired, I stayed in my cabin, our room steward tried to insist on my going to the drill. Without telling him my reasons, I planted my feet and didn't move. For the rest of the Carnival cruise whenever we would receive our fresh laundry back to our stateroom, at night while at dinner, our room steward would make cute animals out of my newly pressed clothes. Only my clothes! Lesson learned, I may sink to the bottom of the sea, I may lose my "C" battle but by golly if it happens I will be neat, never will I diss the room steward. He was right, I was wrong.

[spingal]

OK - I will admit that we don't go. :o

But I always check out the location of our muster station (Vista Lounge, Club Fusion, Wheelhouse Bar, Princess Theatre, etc. - they are always on Promenade Deck, are a showroom or lounge and are in the same relative place on Deck 7 as your cabin) and find our life jackets. I have been to so many that I can remember the information........how to put on the jacket, the whistle, the light that activates when you are in the water, how to enter the water (arms on top of jacket, hold your nose, look below for anyone in water then look at horizon and step out, don't jump), bring your medication and a hat, etc.

But we WILL go in April. My 4 year old niece will be with us and I want to make sure we know if we need to do anything different for her!! :)

Jamie

[magnumcoog]

Heck fire, never would miss one, everyone in life jackets, means the cruise is starting in about 30 minutes.

[Reneek]

WeBeGone you may be missing the funniest people on the ship :D

On one cruise, maybe Celebrity, you had to exit from the lounges to the decks during muster. Someone stood at the doors collecting drinks - now that's a serious drill.

[kryos]

[quote name='trip42']I wont name names but on our Diamond sailing we had people in our CC group who did skip the drill, I myself did not as it was my first cruise and gained information I thought would do me some good.[/QUOTE]
I don't know, but I don't think I would have wanted to skip it if I could.

Muster drill is actually ENTERTAINING on Princess. Far different from what I was used to on HAL. Much more laid back, though the necessary information is most certainly imparted ... it's just done in a more comfortable venue. And ... something I never thought of before. The reason the drill is held in the lounge is because that is exactly where they would want us to gather in the event of an emergency. The drill leader specifically said that if we did hear those short blasts on the ship's horn, requesting us to grab our life jackets and meet in our assigned lounge, it would not necessarily mean that we were going to abandon ship. It could mean perhaps that there was some sort of a dangerous condition where ship's personnel would prefer us all to gather in a certain area ... extremely rough seas, perhaps?

I for one actually enjoyed muster drill, and wouldn't want to miss it. Besides, it gave me a chance to check out all those cute deck hands. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

[bdjam]

[quote name='kryos']It could mean perhaps that there was some sort of a dangerous condition where ship's personnel would prefer us all to gather in a certain area ... extremely rough seas, perhaps?[/QUOTE]
[font='Comic Sans MS']Case in point. A few years ago, passengers on Sun Princess were sailing from [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']San Francisco[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] to [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Ft.[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] Lauderdale after the Alaska season – which is also still in hurricane season. A hurricane was off the coast of [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Cabo San Lucas[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] and had just been downgraded to a tropical storm when Sun Princess left Cabo. The Captain – for some still unexplained and probably crazy reason – decided to drive through it. The passengers were mustered three – yes, three – times over a 24 hour period. The ship was damaged, including some flooding in the Princess Theater and had to put into [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Acapulco[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] for repairs, missing the rest of its Mexican ports of call. Needless to say the Captain was escorted off the ship.[/font]
[font='Comic Sans MS'][/font]
[font='Comic Sans MS'][/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Now imagine if one hadn’t been to the muster drill and thought the signal to muster was one to abandon ship, went out to the Promenade to find a survival craft and was washed off the deck. [/font]

[Cruisin' Chick]

A short while before the drill, hubby takes out his camera, we don our life jackets, and we take photos for our photo album. (It also reminds us to check early for a child-sized jacket for the little one.) Then we head on out to our station. During the last one on the Sapphire, our daughter managed to raise her hand to ask a question while waiting for the drill to begin.

[AliceJ]

I view the muster drill the same way I view seat belts in cars - I never really think that I'll need a seat belt, but on land, they aren't called accidents for nothing!! No one ever thinks they'll need the whole airline/cruise line safety info/drill, but there are a small percentage of people who do. I want to be sure that if I am a member of that very small percentage, that I know what to do and that I am prepared enough that if I cannot help a fellow passenger, I will at least not hinder the process or add to the chaos.

[Host CJSKIDS]

On our 4 Disney cruises they always too roll call at the drills and it was very annoying to wait for those who were late or didn't even bother to show up. I always stay in the same cabin so know each and every time where to show up but I still went. I was surprised on our 10/24 Golden cruise that no one bothered to take roll call or even check off that we were there and people talked throughout the whole thing. Not many people even bothered to show up.

[Melissa at Mohair Meadows]

I guess I'm a rule follower - I wouldn't miss a muster drill for various reasons. It's interesting to read the information that the crew is trying to impart. I have never been able to hear what we were supposed to do - passengers talking, boat noise - all the ruckus drowns out the instructions. :confused:

[jodie84124]

I can't decide if this thread was started to incite us or not. I agree that it's irresponsible to not attend. For firstimers (like me) it was an time to see more of the ship and passengers. Even if you are staying in your cabin and drinking champagne, it's irresponsible to get on a public forum and say so since you might give the impression to firsttimers (like me) that it's OK. Being prepared is just part of life's necessary 'evils'. So....JMHO... Jodie:p

[K9guy]

I go to watch the people. So many look so foolish with their life jackets on when they were told to only WATCH the demonstration. Then its fun to see all the not so bright blowing the whistles that how many others have spit on before them. Suppose that might have something to do with the Norwalk virus? Probably not, but interesting. Personally I think it is a pain, but I would NEVER want to piss off others for not showing up and possibly hold up the entire process. If the ship were really in trouble and going down, I wonder how many people are going to go where they are supposed to go and do what they are supposed to do? Panic would set in and it would be a free for all!! I just hope it never happens!

[Kallen]

The one thing which surprised me was that it wasn't clearly posted in the cabins that children require special life jackets. We saw lots of little kids carrying huge adult sized jackets during muster which could have been avoided had the room steward mentioned it when he/she introduced themselves.

Kerry

[MikeNJ1109]

For those that "can't be bothered" with the muster drill, I have two words to say to you:

"Carnival Tropicale"


Mike

[bdjam]

[quote name='Kallen']The one thing which surprised me was that it wasn't clearly posted in the cabins that children require special life jackets. We saw lots of little kids carrying huge adult sized jackets during muster which could have been avoided had the room steward mentioned it when he/she introduced themselves.

Kerry[/QUOTE]
[font='Comic Sans MS']A good reason to go to muster – they tell you what to do there if you need child-sized life jackets. It could be that the steward didn’t meet the passengers by the time they are on the way to the drill…[/font]

[ahracer]

[quote name='MikeNJ1109']For those that "can't be bothered" with the muster drill, I have two words to say to you:

"Carnival Tropicale"


Mike[/QUOTE]


Can you explain? The Tropicale is still sailing for Costa in Europe.

Scott

[DesrtDrmr]

We've been told at Princess musters that they check all the cabins during the drill. I don't know if it's true, but I have heard it announced several times. It sounds as if some of you don't bother to go, so you would know.....DO they check your cabins????
Princess musters are much less wearing than those of other lines we've been on, where we have to stand on the deck, having roll taken, waiting, waiting for all to show up................BUT, I must admit, I feel a little more secure knowing where MY lifeboat is on those lines.........I haven't a clue on Princess! What if I couldn't GET to whatever lounge the muster is held in? (My DH says I worry about EVERYTHING!!) :D