Did you hear?

[Krazy Kruizers]

Did you about the Norwegian Dawn being hit broadside by a huge wave? ABC talked a little about it this morning. Heard a couple of reports. One said that 2 passenger windows were broken and then later they said that 62 cabins were flooded.

Anyone have any up-dates on this?

[peaches from georgia]

Here's a news report from a NY paper:

 

 

 

'Freak' wave rocks cruise

 

70-footer hits N.Y.-bound ship

 

BY JONATHAN LEMIRE

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

 

A "freak wave" more than 70 feet high slammed a luxury cruise ship steaming for New York yesterday, flooding cabins, injuring passengers and forcing the liner to stop for emergency repairs.

The Norwegian Dawn, an opulent ocean liner almost 1,000 feet long, limped into Charleston, S.C., yesterday afternoon after it hit vicious seas in an overnight storm off Florida - then was creamed by the rogue wave after dawn.

 

"[My room] was destroyed by stuff getting thrown all over the place," passenger James Fraley, of Keansburg, N.J., told NBC News before embarking on the 12-hour drive home because he didn't want to set foot on the ship again.

 

"It was pure chaos."

 

The ship, which sailed from New York last Sunday with 2,500 passengers, had been due back today.

 

It weathered most of a wild storm that featured gale-force winds and choppy seas. But then the vessel, longer than three football fields, was suddenly smacked by the "freak wave," said Norwegian Cruise Line spokeswoman Susan Robison. It broke a pair of windows and flooded 62 cabins, she said.

 

"The sea had actually calmed down when the wave seemed to come out of thin air at daybreak," Robison said. "Our captain, who has 20 years on the job, said he never saw anything like it."

 

The tidal wave wrecked windows on the ninth and 10th floors and wreaked havoc below decks, destroying furniture, the onboard theater, and a store that sold expensive gifts.

 

It also injured four passengers and terrified scores more, many of whom lost belongings and were being flown back to New York early this morning.

 

"My daughter said people were freaking out," said Mel Blanck, 74, whose daughter, Caren Hogan, 42, of Matawan, N.J., was vacationing aboard with her family. "She said some doors were ripped off and broken glass was everywhere."

 

In a message Hogan left on her parents' voice mail, she said her ship "feels like the Titanic" and described "water running everywhere, with people getting hurt and panicking."

 

"She felt lucky that she and her children weren't hurt," said Blanck, whose daughter had called from South Carolina last night. "She's calm now, but she said it was a nightmare."

 

The floating city of a ship, which was commissioned in 2002, left New York a week ago for Orlando, Miami and the Bahamas. It had started heading home when it ran into the wicked weather.

 

During the storm, one frightened passenger called a relative who relayed the information to the Coast Guard, which escorted the ship into Charleston yesterday.

 

"The ocean is unforgiving; it doesn't care who is out there," said Petty Officer Bobby Nash of the Coast Guard in Florida. "This could have happened to anyone."

 

Repairs were done last night, and the ship resumed it's voyage around midnight after a team of Coast Guard inspectors gave it approval.

 

Many of the Norwegian Dawn's passengers remained on the ship while it was readied for the sea again, Robison said. The battered vessel is expected to return to New York tomorrow.

 

All passengers would be given a partial refund, a credit for a future trip and access to the ship's open bar, Robison said.

[LizB1]

Sure glad it wasn't the Maasdam with her engine problems, etc. That is a very scary situation, and a rogue wave can hit anywhere in the world and come out of nowhere at any time.

[sail7seas]

Brings to mind the wave that hit Rotterdam on her crossing.

That sounds very frightening.

 

[grannynurse]

I agree, Sail7. The mid Atlantic sea conditions are starting to sound more treacherous than the north Atlantic, based on just the reports from this board.

It is scary.

GN

[rjbean4]

:cool: Speaking of the Rotterdam, my mom & were on her during the trans atlantic cruise last september when we rode out our version of the perfest storm. And yes mother nature doesn't care who is out there. We were trying to go around Hurricane Karl but then it decided to fall apart on us. The seas got worse as the day wore on and shortly after 6pm knocked us dead in the water for 3 hours due to clogged lubricating oil filters and also from what I have heard since we had bad lubricating oil also. The rought seas also stirred the tanks. Took about 2 hours to get one engine back and another hour for the 2nd as a ship needs 2 for propulsion. In the meantime we were being broadsided by 30 foot seas and at times rolling to as much as 28 degrees.There was a lot of cosmetic damage to the ship but no broken windows. I will never forget that evening and the sound of everything falling & breaking in the Crows Nest. The piano flipped over also as did the one in the Explorers Lounge. They have both been replaced. All the broken doors have finally been replaced also as the Rotterdam just completed her Signature of Excellence drydok in Freeport and now is en route to Europe for the Summer.

 

So it sounds like the Norwegian Dawn was hit by one wave. Like the rogue that also hit the Rotterdam back in August of 03 off of Greenland. Gee wiz, what is mother nature gonna throw at us next.

 

R. J. Bean

43 cruises on HAL at the age of 40

473 days at sea on 11 different DAM SHIPS

8/05 Alaska on the Veendam

12/05 Holiday cruise on the Zaandam

If Holland America Doesn't go there WE DON'T GO!!!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks for the full report.

I knew I could count on this board to fill in all th details that I hadn't caught on the morning news.

[rjbean4]

:cool: Seems like there has been more if this lately. The Rotterdam and her rogue back in Aug. 03 off of Greenland. Have seen pics of that. OH MY!! Then to think we rode out our version of the Perfect Storm on that same ship in the North Atlantic last Sapetember. Nothing like watching all that water comming over the bow and one moment in time where we came pretty close to putting the bow under. I have my video of that. Then the ship used for Semester at Sea that went through the same thing south of Adak Island, Alaska in the Pacific. They diverted to Honolulu for repairs. Students on board were flown to Asia to continue their itinerary by land and then after repairs to the ship were completed the ship went to Asia where the students re joined the ship. There is another ship just like the one being used for Semester at Sea and while that one was in the Med the same thing happend to them. And now the Norwegian Dawn.

 

During our trans atlantic last September we went dead just after 6pm. At the time we were 1 1/2 hours ahead of Eastern time. As it tuned out, the last advisory from NOAA for Hurricane Karl factoring in the difference in time was less than 45 minn after we stopped moving. That was the last advisory for Karl as the next morning I went to print the latest advisories for Karl and Jeanne, the time of the advisory for Karl was 5pm EDT on Sept 24th. So between that advisory and 11pm EDT Karl had fallen apart and was no longer classified as a hurricane. Mother nature does what she wants, when she wants. So much for our plan to go around it to the south as it moved north.

 

R. J . Bean

43 cruises on HAL at the age of 40

473 days at sea on 11 different DAM SHIPS

8/05 Alaska on the Veendam

12/05 Holiday Cruise on the Zaandam

[RuthC]

That wasn't a rogue wave that hit the Rotterdam off Greenland in '03. That was a sustained storm of 45' seas, with gale force 10 winds for 38 consecutive hours. I watched a great deal of it from the front seats in the Crow's Nest.

It started as we left Nuuk, at 2:00 P.M. on Sunday afternoon. The storm did not calm down until about 4:00 A.M. on Tuesday.

 

Now, there was a rogue wave that hit the ss Rotterdam and did significant damage to the Queens Lounge. Does anyone remember the complete story on that one? I don't, but I do remember the "cover-up" that was there right until the final voyage. Wonder if it was left in place when Premier took over?

[cruzincurt]

Oh, I'm sure it was that person who called their relative that alerted the Coast Guard. I don't think so. Good to hear not too many injuries. I can't imagine this happening to a ship full of New Yorker's though, that would be ugly.

 

Check out the thread on "Ask a cruise question" about "Can a ship sink?"

 

Being from Florida, how does a ship make a port stop in Orlando????

[rjbean4]

:cool: Cruzincurt, yeah I wondered about that too when I saw Orlando as a port of call. Wonder if it was mistaken for Port Canaveral. But wouldn't that be interesting if it was possible. We have gone inland in Holland to Amsterdam via the North Sea Canal & Rotterdam cruising the Nieuwe Mass.on board the Statendam & Rotterdam.

 

Can a ship sink? Gee, with the way we were rolling from side to side last September I wondered every time if we were going to stop or if we were going to turn into the "Posideon Adventure". And the worst part was this went on for 3 hours while we were trying to get our propulsion back and some of it was after it got dark and we were on emergency power. Everything that evening was suspended. The dining room was evacuated. The shops and the spa were closed the next day. Passengers helping crew clean up the mess and I was one of them. But after everything that had happend there was food to be served in the Lido later that night for those that wanted it.

 

Ruth C, Ok it was a sustained storm. For what I had read about it I wasn't aware of that. Now I know and thanks for the info. If you sat and watched it from the Crows Nest that's where I rode out our Perfect Storm during the crossing last September.

 

With the changes that have been made to the Rotterdam from her just completed drydock at Freeport what we both watched from the Crows Nest is no longer possible. The spa has been enlarged using that outside deck space in front on Lido deck. Its now impossible to see the bow of the ship from the Crows Nest. I have a friend that is currently working on the Rotterdam in the Beverage Dept. and we went down to see him in Ft. Lauderdale last Monday. He had visitor passes for us as always so we were able to go on board and see all the changes. Talk about a facelift from our last 2 cruises on her last September and December for the Holidays.

 

R. J. Bean

43 cruises on HAL at the age of 40

473 days at sea on 11 different DAM SHIPS

8/05 Alaska on the Veendam

12/05 Holiday Cruise on the Zaandam

If Holland America doesn't go there WE DON'T GO!!!!