Missing people at Sea

[deltatango]

In the Daily Mail to-day it states that scores have gone missing from Cruise ships, since 1995 165 people and in the last year 12 have gone missing, How many from RCI ships anyone know ?

[irishgirl]

In the Daily Mail to-day it states that scores have gone missing from Cruise ships, since 1995 165 people and in the last year 12 have gone missing, How many from RCI ships anyone know ?

 

24 in the last 10 years.

 

Judy

[Sue L]

Quite a few...but each line has had their share. Most cases involved large quantities of alcohol or distraught individuals who chose this way.

[digital_curator]

I don't want to sound crass, but when you think about how many people cruise each year, this number really is quite small.

 

If the Allure and Oasis sail full 52 weeks of the year, they carry over 1/2 million people in that period!

 

Just something to put that seemingly large number into perspective.

[alexkrn46]

I don't want to sound crass, but when you think about how many people cruise each year, this number really is quite small.

 

If the Allure and Oasis sail full 52 weeks of the year, they carry over 1/2 million people in that period!

 

Just something to put that seemingly large number into perspective.

 

That is great post, I wonder if this is higher or lower than shoreside stats.

[Rancher Dave]

That is great post, I wonder if this is higher or lower than shoreside stats.

 

I'd try to crunch number against air travel but cruises last a lot longer than flights do...so how to really make it a good comparison.

[billie5]

Suicides and drunken dispatches are remarkably rare out of passenger aircraft.:D

 

Bill

[Rancher Dave]

Suicides remarkably rare out of passenger aircraft.:D

 

Bill

 

That part...probably not right for today.

 

Agree though loss of life on commercial aircraft is really low and has been over the past 10 years. At least on US bound and departing aircraft and those within the USA...aeromedical helicopters though have a high incidence rate.

[stacieg1011]

If you "go" overboard on one of these ships you have to try to do it. The railing is pretty high and unless you were walking on it or trying to crawl over I doubt you could just fall off. ;)

[Desertbelle]

If you "go" overboard on one of these ships you have to try to do it. The railing is pretty high and unless you were walking on it or trying to crawl over I doubt you could just fall off. ;)

I know I am short (5'1") but the cruise railing come up to my arm pits...I have to lift my arms up to just lean on the railings. So I agree, it would take some serious effort, even for someone a foot taller, to go over the railing.

[jagsfan]

there's a web site......eventsatsea.com that lists just that..events at sea. It includes deaths and missing people.

[Wayah]

There was a drunk man on our April 2011 Serenade cruise that decided the boat wasn't big enough for both him and his wife at 2am in the morning. A little cold salt water though and he was glad to grab a life ring. We were just lucky he did; we would have missed a port day if we had to circle for 24 hours.

[bobmal99]

Unless one of the missing persons

is a member of your family.

Personally, I think one person

missing, is one to many..

JMHO

 

I don't want to sound crass, but when you think about how many people cruise each year, this number really is quite small.

 

If the Allure and Oasis sail full 52 weeks of the year, they carry over 1/2 million people in that period!

 

Just something to put that seemingly large number into perspective.

[TPKeller]

Unless one of the missing persons

is a member of your family.

Personally, I think one person

missing, is one to many..

JMHO

The point of his post was not to belittle the value of any one person who goes missing on a cruise, but to point out that in the real world life experience in general, the instance of suicide or just plain missing person, is probably higher than it is for the time spent on a cruise.

 

In real-world terms, what that means is that you are probably less likely to commit suicide or go missing while you are on a cruise than you would in your every day life.

 

It just gets more attention on a cruise because of the great impact to all concerned.

 

Sort of like the fact that flying commercial airlines are safer than driving to the airport in your car. The car accidents on the way to the airport never make the news, but the plane accidents do.

 

Theron

[lilant]

In the Daily Mail to-day it states that scores have gone missing from Cruise ships, since 1995 165 people and in the last year 12 have gone missing, How many from RCI ships anyone know ?

 

 

less people in the buffet line!

 

 

anthony

[rummenroman]

less people in the buffet line!

 

 

anthony

 

Really? The loss of someone (suicide, or otherwise), and you think of it as one less person in the buffet line.....How truly sad.

[jayjackel]

less people in the buffet line!

 

 

anthony

 

Suicide is a tradegy i hope you never have to realize in your family.

 

Depression is a medical condition which most of us can not comprehend. However, for those who suffer from this condition, it is almost unbearable and needs constant medication.

 

Your reply is insensative and I hope we never meet

[deltatango]

I thought the number that went missing was quite high, that was the reason for the post, but when you look at the number of ships in service in 2011 maybe its not that high.

[WhiteSoxFan]

The car accidents on the way to the airport never make the news, but the plane accidents do.

 

 

They would if they affected hundreds of people in one incident.

 

I thought the number that went missing was quite high, that was the reason for the post, but when you look at the number of ships in service in 2011 maybe its not that high.

 

When you consider that, according to Wikipedia, cruiselines worldwide carry somewhere in the neighborhood of 19 million passengers per year and that most passengers that go overboard either do so of their own accord or are nominees for a Darwin award, I would consider this one of the last of my concerns.

[Sequim88]

Do those stats include staff/crew? I could see suicides in that population as being far more likely than amongst passengers. Between the very long hours, sleep deprivation, being far from home and family and (reportedly) prodigous alcohol consumption I would think the conditions would be ripe for personal tragedies. Besides, crew have access to area a lot less likely to be monitored and a lot closer to the water.

[Highlander1]

I'd bet the US Navy and Coast Guard could blow those numbers out of the water, that is if they'd admit it. Tragic, regardless if its accidential or intentional.

[PeterPan]

Based on the numbers cited in this thread, I calculate the percentage to be 0.000006% of the passengers in the past year went missing. :eek:

[mjldvlks]

Do those stats include staff/crew? . . .

I looked up the article in question and it involved a young English woman who dissappeared from a Disney ship she was working on last march, so the number appears to inlcude passengers and crew. The numbers are indeed small. Assuming the 19 million passengers a year is correct, and conservatively that crew size averages about 40% of the passenger capacity, then 165 dissappearing over the span of 16 years 3 one hundred thousandths of one per cent of the number of people who travel on the ships. Feel free to check my math.

 

However small the numbers are is small consolation to the families of the missing. The article was primarly about the missing young woman's family's efforts to get some answers about her disappearance. They simply want to know what happened and they face many obstacles in finding out because of the fact that it is not always clear who has jurisdiction to investigate. Typically it is the nation where the ship is flagged. But the Bahamas, for instance [since the Disney ship in question is flagged there], are not real motivated to investigate a missing person from a cruise ship off the West coast of Mexico or the US.

 

Here is a link of anyone wants to read the article:

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2036056/Scores-people-gone-missing-cruise-ships-Its-time-say-parents-girl-vanished-Disney-liner.html

 

The US recently passed legislation to require notice to the FBI of instances involving US citizens. The father of the missing woman in the story is trying to get similar legislation for UK citizens. There are many reasons why a passenger or crew member might dissappear. Many [maybe even most] of these reasons are not the responsibility of the cruise line. But, I think it is reasonable to clarify jurisdiction so that the familes can get reasonable investigations.

[lakelorain]

We had an Assistant Waiter jump overboard off the Explorer last year. Very sad.

[PhoenixDawgCruising]

Suicides by hotel guests are more common than you might think. The hotels (at least the nice ones) do a lot to downplay them when they happen.

 

I was at the Jamaica Grande when a guy decided to jump off his balcony due to a pending divorce. I only knew about it because my ex worked at the hotel at the time. I can tell you that the rest of the guests had no idea, even though he dove off his balcony and landed on the roof of the casino/restaurant building below.:eek: