First cruise with Oceania

[hondorner]

Of course Fairbourne is correct in posting a cautionary note that those unfamiliar with the muster procedures should not consider following my practice. I should have thought of that myself, and I appreciate that she did.

 

What got my back up, a lttle, was the inference that that my comment be construed as advice.

 

Anything anyone (including me) says on a forum like this should be taken as a grain of salt, and a report of someone's experience should always be filtered against one's personal situation.

 

I'm a bit persnickity about the meaning of words and likely have skin too thin when I'm not taken literally. I apologize in general for that.

[hypercafe]

Oceania is the only line I have been on in the last few years that has not asked that you DO NOT bring your life vest to the drill because of tripping hazard caused by the straps dragging on the floor. I have not taken it to the drill on Oceania and not had a problem. No matter what I or anyone else does I assume we are all adults able to think for ourselves, if you want to ware the jacket for the drill or the whole trip go for it.

 

 

 

Sent from my XT1032 using Forums mobile app

[LHT28]

I try to avoid the GDR on the first night because people at the muster drill have picked up the plates/glasses & silverware to inspect them of course after touching the life vests & who know what else enroute to their station

 

Then there are those that chat & giggle through the whole demo on what to do in case of an emergency not to mention those that just have to blow the whistle :eek:

Goodness knows how clean that is

 

I carry my lift jacket to & from the drill making sure the straps are wrapped up I have seen other tripping over them in a hurry to leave the muster station others are pushing to get back to whatever they were doing before the drill

[DrHemlock]

"Oceania is the only line I have been on in the last few years that has not asked that you DO NOT bring your life vest to the drill because of tripping hazard caused by the straps dragging on the floor."

 

Wow, hypercafe…really? Not doubting your comment, but we were required to bring them to muster drill earlier this year on RSSC Mariner, and to don them in the show lounge before heading to the lifeboats. I can't remember ever not being required to bring the life vest to muster drill on either O or RSSC, which has been our only experience. Maybe it's just a Prestige Cruise Holdings thing.

 

As for the stories of muster drill staging in the MDR with tables already set…..EEEWWWW!! Disgusting. We will be avoiding the MDR on the first night of our upcoming O cruise if that's still the procedure, just like LHT28 to whom we send thanks for the excellent idea.

[Mura]

Oceania is the only line I have been on in the last few years that has not asked that you DO NOT bring your life vest to the drill because of tripping hazard caused by the straps dragging on the floor. I have not taken it to the drill on Oceania and not had a problem. No matter what I or anyone else does I assume we are all adults able to think for ourselves, if you want to ware the jacket for the drill or the whole trip go for it.

 

 

This thread has gotten a bit convoluted ... I don't mind people disagreeing with things I have said (this to Dr. Hemlock)!

 

But as to what Hypercafe has said, on our last two cruises (November 2013, May 2014) we were asked to bring our life jackets to the drill but NOT to put them on in advance. I'm not sure if we got different instructions or perceived them differently. We were also asked to take them OFF when leaving. I'm not sure if it prevents "tripping" if you are wearing the jacket or carrying it with you ... but that's what we were told.

 

When we were at the drill we were asked to put them on so as to be sure that we knew how to do so. Given that those recent cruises suggested we not put the jackets on in advance (this is different from earlier cruises, I agree) AND that we are told to come straight to the drill if not in our room, it would appear that the crew is prepared to show us how to do so. Am I wrong?

 

I also didn't intend to suggest that bringing your life jackets is unnecessary, and I don't think that Don meant to do so either. Given the Concordia disaster it's pretty clear that we should all know where our life jackets are and how to put them on.

 

Mura

[MightyQuinn]

We were on Azamara Quest when there was a serious engine fire that caused the ship to lose power. It happened around 8:00 pm when most passengers were out & about the ship. The Captain sounded the general emergency alarm and requested that we muster to our stations. It's amazing how different a real situation is from a practice drill. Some passengers were disoriented and needed direction to their muster stations, even though the drill was only days before. Crew were controlled but nervous. Very few passengers had life jackets with them and we were not able to get back to our rooms to retrieve them. Many were distressed that they didn't have them. However, it was reassuring to see that while we were in muster, crew assembled a vast number of life jackets on the outside deck where lifeboats would be lowered if need be. I'm not sure if these were from our rooms or from the extra supply that all ships carry. Thankfully, we didn't need them that nite.