Dear Celebrity - how are you prepared for emergency like Carnival Triumph?

[greydog]

Conditions for those onboard Carnival Triumph are reportedly dismal, e.g. sanitation, long waits for food, meals like 'onion sandwiches'. Everyone is very thankful that safety systems prevented a wider disaster from the engine room fire.

 

Please Celebrity, what preparations are in place to minimize such unfortunate temporary emergency living conditions (to be retrofitted and/or are to be designed in for new builds)?

 

Are there 1-2 day palatable emergency rations with plastic utensils stored to avoid the long line waits and make-do meals?

Are there separate back-up emergency power systems dedicated to powering some minimum level of essential services to safeguard onboard health (drinking water, sanitation, ventilation)?

Is there some preplanned emergency assignments of outside deck space and/or public rooms (feasible in inclement weather?) when conditions prevent use of cabins?

 

Please provide assurances that there are preparations for such unfortunate contingencies

[DavidYYC]

I freaking LOVE onion sandwiches...

[red-rose]

I freaking LOVE onion sandwiches...

 

haha... I can't say I do, but my husband certainly wouldn't complain!

[Andy]

Hi Greydog,

 

While your question is understandable, Celebrity typically does not post responses on here. You may wish to contact Celebrity directly.

[SnorkelBoy]

I freaking LOVE onion sandwiches...

 

so funny, my youngest daughter in kindergarten used to take onion sandwiches for lunch. I have never heard of anyone else liking them, so I'll pass it on to her she is not alone.

 

Another Dave

[Northeast Jake]

These engine fires seem to be a consistant problem for CCL. I remember one poster not happy with X because there were not conga lines, sexy legs contests, belly flop contests, etc. (too boring). I will take a functioning ship everytime. I guess fun is in the eye of the beholder, my idea of a "fun ship" is not drifting at sea, eating onion sandwiches and peeing in a 5 gallon bucket!

[BODICERIPPER]

Found this below - not sure if it is helpful:

"Since 1980, safety standards for cruise ships went way up, via the updated international Safety of Life at Sea agreement. The new regulations are mainly fire-based and cruisecritic.com lays them out as such: “two means of [escape] from all atrium levels; low-level lighting systems; installation of smoke detectors, sprinklers, fire detectors and fire alarm systems in all accommodations and service areas; and fireproof enclosures around all stairways.”

So there’s that. The deadline for every cruise ship in the world to hit these standards was 2010. But, SOLAS or not, there’ve been at least two major shipboard fires in the past 15 years, the last being the Star Princess catching fire in 2006. One person died and several went to the hospital for smoke inhalation-related health issues. The ship survived."

[Karen@Steve]

My DH also took a rare and extensive engine room tour on an M Class ship last year. He asked similar questions around redundant systems and emergency power. They showed a ship's diagram and explained how emergency power systems were located away from the engine rooms to prevent a complete power failure in the event that the engine room is compromised.

 

While I won't say a Celebrity ship couldn't get into trouble at least the design seems to give them a chance at maintaining basic amenities.

[JRJARS]

Although not something I would want to go through I am a bit skeptical of the reports we are hearing from the passengars on board. The reports of long food lines, no food, running out of toilet paper started the following day after the fire. Although no power would cause refridgerated food to go bad you can't tell me that the ship doesn't have plenty of other things to serve....look at all the fruits, cakes, cookies, breads. And I don't think that the stuff in their freezers would instantly go bad either. I would imagine that there are a handful of people that have organized the mutiny in the theatre and are getting others stirred up with yelling at the captain and threatening law suits. The lack of toilets would not be pretty but it's probably like when there is a gas shortage...suddenly everyone runs to the gas station when they still have half a tank - panic is not pretty! I would like to think in that situation knowing that it is for just a couple days to go with the flow (no pun intended) I would still lay out by the pool, read my book, and watch all the others stand in a 3 hour food line acting like they haven't eaten in a year. Being that said I am curious why the coast guard hasn't flown in food, generators - or maybe they have.

[greydog]

Hi Greydog,

 

While your question is understandable, Celebrity typically does not post responses on here. You may wish to contact Celebrity directly.

 

Hi Andy,

My question in this public forum helps raise the visibility of this issue, or at least, the need for more onions in the pantry.

 

If we still had the "Q & A with CEO" pending, this would be very relevant.

 

Celebrity providing a response to me alone on this issue would leave other X cruisers uninformed. So, I put the issue on the table for Celebrity to respond to the cruising community if they care to. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

 

If, as another has suggested, Celebrity has already designed in some precautions along these lines, I wasn't aware and this is a reassuring PR opportunity.

 

Andy, thanks for your service to this board.

[JanineM]

Hi Andy,

My question in this public forum helps raise the visibility of this issue, or at least, the need for more onions in the pantry.

 

If we still had the "Q & A with CEO" pending, this would be very relevant.

 

Celebrity providing a response to me alone on this issue would leave other X cruisers uninformed. So, I put the issue on the table for Celebrity to respond to the cruising community if they care to. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

 

If, as another has suggested, Celebrity has already designed in some precautions along these lines, I wasn't aware and this is a reassuring PR opportunity.

 

Andy, thanks for your service to this board.

 

Honestly, I think this is being blown out of proportion. If you read all of the news reports there are a few people who keep repeating the same comments, and a few others saying things aren't so bad. I am in no way diminishing the events because I am sure it is horrific on that particular ship. Yes, Carnival had a similar incident last year. But the reason these events are so newsworthy is because they are exceedingly rare!

 

You can bet that there are discussions going on at Royal Caribbean to determine vulnerability of the ships in their family of businesses. But because of the world we live in, I wouldn't expect any corporation to discuss vulnerabilities and precautionary measures for two reasons: legal liability, and the risk that someone will use that information to their advantage (e.g., terrorism).

[cruisetrail]

I was invited to a very rare engine room tour on a Celebrity ship I won't name and it was just after the Carnival Splendor tow-in event and I asked the head engineer if the same sort of thing could happen on a Celebrity ship.

 

In a nut shell he said much less likely that such an event would happen on "X" because their ships have more redundant systems built in. In effect, he said that CCLs builds are to a lower standard than required by RCI

 

 

All cruise lines take measures to prevent situations like this and have plans for such situations.

 

None of cruise lines will dare to say seriously that their ships are safer than others.

The God may not like this statement (knocking on wood).

 

 

 

 

Things happen. RCI is not an exception (Allure) .

Also note the absence of life jackets in cabins on those ships.

[cruisetrail]

Dear Celebrity - how are you prepared for emergency like Carnival Triumph?

 

Dear fellow cruisers - how are we prepared for emergency like Carnival Triumph?

[generichandle]

My fear with an accident like Triumph is weather. The stablizers cannot work. There is no way to power the ship's engines. So large waves could topple this helpless ship easily. Then a cruise adventure becomes a Posieden Adventure. Next stop, Atlantis. *shudder*

 

On the lighter side; when my mother carried me, she craved onion sandwiches. I have loved onions in every form and iteration since. Nothing better than slices of sweet vidalias between two slices of homemade bread, with butter, salt, and pepper! Heaven.

 

Doug

[mdmourges]

personally I look at these things statistically and based on the total person days at sea by all the cruise ships for the last 5 years, a failure like this on a cruise I am on, is not going to happen. I also keep buying lotto tix and that has not helped my retirement dreams either.

[Presto2]

Its still better than being on an aeroplane with a major technical problem ---------

[nanofrog]

Its still better than being on an aeroplane with a major technical problem ---------

Now that really puts it into perspective!!!:D

[rervousneck]

Its still better than being on an aeroplane with a major technical problem ---------

 

DW always says if that happens she wants it to happen on the flight home after the cruise.

[CruiseAwayWithMe]

I freaking LOVE onion sandwiches...

 

Me too!!! :D

[catugirl]

I have always been curious...when ships go in to dry dock for refurbishing, are all the onboard systems, engines, etc. thoroughly checked and repaired? The aesthetics are great, but if the ship doesn't function properly, you have a REAL problem.