Man overboard on the Glory

[SFplusP]

We were on the Glory this time last year (almost- April), and as a mom with young kids, this was my biggest fear. The patio on deck 3 doesn't have railing like around the top. It has bars with open spaces between it, and I can tell you, my 1 year old at the time, 2 now, could easily have fit between those bars if she wanted to. She is of that age where she would want to go through to try and hide and play. Every time we were on 3 if she was even close to the rail she had to hold a hand. Maybe I'm just paranoid, but it made me nervous. Now, a 21 year old probably couldn't fit through there, but I can see how it could happen on accident at least for littler ones.

[Fun@C]

Trentrent thank you for your updates!

[aowens]

I'm actually on the Glory right now. I don't think anyone on this cruise is "upset about missing a port". The only people who are making these types of comments are at home on the Internet assuming how people on board are feeling and acting. The prevailing mood on this ship is one of concern and compassion for the young man and his traveling companions as well as the family back home.

 

Trent

Please keep us updated. I have worried about this family all day

[ldlewis45]

I feel for the guy and his family and traveling companions, but I just don't understand how an adult just "falls" overboard.

[Sotermarler]

Very sad, I feel for the family and passengers on that sailing.

Also it scares me to think that one could just fall off the ship with out climbing or jumping over. I've often wondered if the ship rocked hard like in rough seas, could someone go over?

[20somethingguy]

The reason why it is discovered hours later that a person has gone overboard is that cruise lines refuse to invest in automated man overboard systems, citing its not required for their vessels. Why? The ships are flagged under flags of convenience (Panama, Malta, etc.) that don't require them, even though automated MOB systems are required for US vessels.

 

They only have closed-circuit cameras aimed at the sides of the ship and rely on people noticing someone missing/seeing someone go overboard.

 

Once a person goes overboard, its difficult to be heard in the water due to the sound of the propulsion and waves.

 

 

Its a real shame that there is technology that would alert the bridge if anyone fell overboard right away, which would then prompt the officers to review the cameras of the section where the alarm sounded, and commence an immediate search of the waters.

 

Instead, hours later, the ship turns around and then searches. Its really sad. There is technology that would save lives, but the cruise lines want to minimize their costs and no one knows that the systems exist.

 

If you want to learn more, just google automated man overboard alarm. They are extremely accurate, and feasible for a cruise ship.

Edited March 9, 2015 by 20somethingguy

[Velvetwater]

This was from another forum from a passenger:

 

'All morning long we were going at full speed BACK to where they think the guy went overboard. (We were within sight of Half Moon Cay when we turned around so we have been traveling back at least 5 or 6 hours.) Now we are going very slow and in circles searching. There is another Carnival ship close by and it appears they are doing the same. Not sure how long they will continue to search. The captain said that once the Coast Guard releases our ship from the search, he would let us know what additional changes will be made to the itinerary.

 

We ran into our waiter from last week and he was upset because the guy was at his table last night. He told us that he was very drunk when they came into the dining room. I have heard no details of how or why the guy went overboard but I do know the seas were very rough. I do know from the announcements this morning that he was in a cabin right below ours and one deck down.

 

We just got a letter in our cabin saying that we will get $19 per person refunded to our account for missing Half Moon Cay. They also delivered a revised Fun Times newsletter with additional activities for the rest of the day.

 

Jane...try Googling "man overboard on Carnival Glory" and see if you get anything. The letter we got from the captain says the family has been notified so it might be in the news now.'

 

Seems that if this person is telling the truth he reall was drunk. So sad for all involved.

[legion3]

The reason why it is discovered hours later that a person has gone overboard is that cruise lines refuse to invest in automated man overboard systems, citing its not required for their vessels. Why? The ships are flagged under flags of convenience (Panama, Malta, etc.) that don't require them, even though automated MOB systems are required for US vessels.

 

They only have closed-circuit cameras aimed at the sides of the ship and rely on people noticing someone missing/seeing someone go overboard.

 

Once a person goes overboard, its difficult to be heard in the water due to the sound of the propulsion and waves.

 

 

Its a real shame that there is technology that would alert the bridge if anyone fell overboard right away, which would then prompt the officers to review the cameras of the section where the alarm sounded, and commence an immediate search of the waters.

 

Instead, hours later, the ship turns around and then searches. Its really sad. There is technology that would save lives, but the cruise lines want to minimize their costs and no one knows that the systems exist.

 

If you want to learn more, just google automated man overboard alarm. They are extremely accurate, and feasible for a cruise ship.

 

While I agree in principal, I would change the absolute of WOULD save lives to COULD save lives. It certainly gives a man overboard a better chance.

 

I know two of the cruise ships search missions we did, the ship was going slow, where a crewman fell overboard while working, with workers watching which reported it immediately, and he was still not rescued or found. It was still dark and its hard to find someone in a dark sea. This particular search and rescue was outside Glacier Bay Alasks as the ship was preparing to enter the bay. We did find his eyeglass case floating the next day.

 

 

The other occurred not long after the ship left San Diego and the crewman involved fell overboard, it was dusk as the sun was setting with lots of boats nearby and he was also never found. It was believed that the current carried him away.

 

Both of these events occurred in the early 90's

[chengkp75]

lcleland14: I seriously doubt that "the word was out" on what was seen on the video. Just as during a crime investigation, the police will not release details of the crime scene, it would be extremely imprudent for the Captain to allow even speculation to leave a small circle of officers without clearance from the corporate lawyers and media specialists. He would most likely be looking for a job very soon, or at least receive a letter of warning in his personnel file.

 

For those who think someone could "fall" overboard, take a 6'6" tall person for example, and set up a barrier 42" high, and see if you can even push them over it.

 

20somethingguy:

 

There is only one US vessel that is required to have the automated MOB devices you mention, the NCL POA. I do not believe that ferry boats are required to meet this requirement.

 

The technology may or may not be accurate, it only uses size and temperature to distinguish a person from a trash can. It will very likely be many, many years, if ever, that a study can conclusively determine whether or not the ships equipped with this save a larger percentage of people who go overboard than those ships not so equipped, since the sample size is so small.

 

And I agree with legion3, that this technology may help save lives.

 

This person went overboard at night. If the bridge had been notified immediately, it still would have required 20-30 minutes to slow the ship, turn around, and return to the site. Then lowering the rescue boats, and estimating current and drift. The boats then have to find something the size of a human head (the only part really visible above water) in the pitch dark and in running seas. This is unfortunately very, very rare.

 

I have worked on ships for 40 years, and we are required to conduct a man overboard drill every 3 months. We throw a dummy overboard, and immediately perform the required Williamson turn (returns the vessel to the exact reciprocal track), have someone at the rail trying to keep an eye on the "victim", and then launch the rescue boat. I can't tell you how many times we have lost the "victim" even when in full daylight, calm seas, good visibility, orange "clothing" on the "victim" and immediate notification. It is so bad, that we are instructed to never use anything plastic on the "victim" since it will become pollution if we lose it, and never to have the ship's name on it, since subsequent spotting by another vessel could lead to a false report of our sinking.

 

It is a sad fact of life at sea, that if you go overboard, the odds are stacked well against your recovery.

[rjackieb]

In another place, a person on board mentioned that the seas the night before were somewhat rough. I honestly don't know if that contributed, but it leaves the door open to this man not being drunk or "foolish."

We were on the Triumph for NYE in 2013, and ran into 18 hours of very rough seas shortly after leaving Cozumel. Our entire last sea day made for difficult walking anywhere on the ship, and I saw a few people actually come off the floor during some of the bigger waves. If they'd have been anywhere near a rail, they very possibly could have gone overboard.

Yes, it can happen; not drunk, not suicidal or foolish, just an accident.

Edited March 9, 2015 by rjackieb

[USNUZULOOSE]

I normally do not get involved with any drama on these boards but I have to pipe in with my sincere prayers. Some are upset about missing port? The only thing I would have is compassion and sadness in my heart, a port or someones lost life and their families pain? There would be no room in my heart for such trivial disappointment in missing a port .. :(

 

Thank You, the way I see it , a person is much more important than all the vacations in the world.

[ScottsSweetie]

 

I have worked on ships for 40 years, and we are required to conduct a man overboard drill every 3 months. We throw a dummy overboard, and immediately perform the required Williamson turn (returns the vessel to the exact reciprocal track), have someone at the rail trying to keep an eye on the "victim", and then launch the rescue boat. I can't tell you how many times we have lost the "victim" even when in full daylight, calm seas, good visibility, orange "clothing" on the "victim" and immediate notification. It is so bad, that we are instructed to never use anything plastic on the "victim" since it will become pollution if we lose it, and never to have the ship's name on it, since subsequent spotting by another vessel could lead to a false report of our sinking.

 

It is a sad fact of life at sea, that if you go overboard, the odds are stacked well against your recovery.

 

Very interesting and informative. Thanks for sharing.

[LambKnuckles]

I came home today to a find a message on our answering machine. It was our daughter who is on the Glory now. She said that someone had gone overboard and wanted to let us know that she and her friends were safe. Not all college kids on spring break are irresponsible and drunk! My prayers and sympathy go out to the family!

 

 

What a caring daughter!! How wonderful that she called.

 

I am continuing to pray for the search and for the families.

 

I would think the assumption of drunkenness or foolishness would be a safe assumption. ... And I would assume that he was alone at the time, since no one alerted anyone, is also a safe assumption. But not knowing all the facts except that Carnival, the Coast Guard, and everyone is doing all they can and they are following procedure, I can't think of anything to do, but pray!

[pe4all]

Maybe it is time for Carnival (which, btw, has some of the strictest age-related booking policies) to re-think the ages for booking during Spring Break times. While many 21 year olds (college seniors) in their last semester before graduating are able to control themselves, some are not. Unfortunately, "punishing" the many for the acts of a few may just save some lives. Perhaps raising the age to 23 will help. (except for military personnel)

Carnival's current policy: (from their website)

 

How old do you have to be to travel alone?

Guests are required to be 21 years old (on embarkation day) to travel. Guests under the age of 21 must be accompanied in the same stateroom by a parent or guardian 25 or older. The exceptions Carnival will make to this policy are:

Married minor couple - The booking must be documented that the couple is married. The couple must have proof of marriage at embarkation or they will be denied boarding without the benefit of a refund.

Domestic Partners/Same-Sex Union minor couple - The booking must be documented that the couple are legal Domestic Partners/Same-Sex Union. The couple must have legal proof of partnership/union at embarkation or they will be denied boarding without the benefit of a refund.

Guest ages will be verified at embarkation. Guests not conforming to this policy will be denied boarding and assessed a 100% cancellation penalty. NO exceptions will be made at embarkation.

The Group policy is slightly different because of stricter group terms and conditions including mandatory chaperones, damage deposits and other considerations.

[legion3]

 

I have worked on ships for 40 years, and we are required to conduct a man overboard drill every 3 months. We throw a dummy overboard, and immediately perform the required Williamson turn (returns the vessel to the exact reciprocal track), have someone at the rail trying to keep an eye on the "victim", and then launch the rescue boat. I can't tell you how many times we have lost the "victim" even when in full daylight, calm seas, good visibility, orange "clothing" on the "victim" and immediate notification. It is so bad, that we are instructed to never use anything plastic on the "victim" since it will become pollution if we lose it, and never to have the ship's name on it, since subsequent spotting by another vessel could lead to a false report of our sinking.

 

It is a sad fact of life at sea, that if you go overboard, the odds are stacked well against your recovery.

 

Yep, we used to do the same drill in the Coast Guard, we always did it in bright daylight and it still was hard to always find the dummy...who floated horizontally on the sea and not just a head. And no Coast Guard Cutter wants to lose their overboard dummy, they would never live that down.

 

We did do one drill a year at night with a dummy that had a blinking strobe light (similar to the ones we wore on our float coats - the big orange coats the Coasties wear while on deck underway, and it took us a good hour + to find those dummys...even with the light blinking. One time the moon light played havoc with the blinking light recognition.

 

I was a quartermaster (navigator) so it was my job on the bridge to get us back to the exact spot where the man overboard was sounded, if the Williamson turn was off even by a little or the wake was already washed out by waves.

[rachelnico]

I'm on the Carnival Ecstasy.

 

It was our at sea day, so there was no issue with our boat circling the area and joining in the search. The announcement happened around 10/11am

 

There were about 4/5 other cruise ships / fishing boats / freight ships etc that I could see all around us throughout the day and a S/R helicopter.

 

Around 9pm our captain said he was sorry to inform us that the man overboard had not been found and that we were now in our way to port ( we dock in a Miami for 8am) it was super sad. The captain seemed really chocked up about it and asked everyone to keep the passengers family and friends in our prayers.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sweet Dutch Girl]

Perhaps raising the age to 23 will help. (except for military personnel).

 

I thank our military men and women for their service but I don't think exceptions should be made for them if the drinking age is raised. They also imbibe and many don't know their limits...they are no smarter than the other guy.

 

Irregardless of what causes any passenger to go overboard from a cruise ship it is a tragic event and should be treated as such. We are all human and many of us are apt to participate in activities that can undermine our personal safety whether we drink or not. And no amount of physical protection (railing height etc) on board a vessel at sea, or age limits, or the amount of liquor served can insulate anyone from "an accident".

 

We will never know the circumstances of what went on and no speculation will change that. I, for one, don't blame the person involved, the ship, or anything else...for me its a tragic accident pure and simple.

[mitsugirly]

So very sad. My thoughts are with his family and friends and those on the Glory. :(

[shanefm3]

Who cares how they died. How about a little human empathy for a lost life ?. You've made mistakes, your kids have also. The world would be a smaller place if everyone died over their mistakes. Have some compassion people

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Georgie562]

How does one go overboard on a ship unless copious amounts of alcohol are involved? Well, it's one of the Spring break weeks, so no surprise.

 

Sorry if I do not sound sympathetic. This just messes up everyone's cruise. :(

 

I agree

Edited March 9, 2015 by Georgie562

[RCmommy]

I am curious as to how long nearby ships or the passenger-overboard's ship itself is required or obligated to look?

 

I can only imagine how difficult it was for the Glory captain to then steer the boat on its way to the next port of call. Especially I am assuming with the man's travel companions still on board. Awful!

 

If I was family of the victim, it would be horrifying to know the vessels have to leave and he could be still alive. We all know the chances are not good, but if that was my family member out there I would not want to give up.

Edited March 9, 2015 by RCmommy

[Sweet Dutch Girl]

How does one go overboard on a ship unless copious amounts of alcohol are involved?

 

Really, really? I've seen enough young teens push the limit on a ship from playing around on lifeboats to standing on chairs on their balconies, to daring their friends to walk the rail. And there is supported evidence that some poor souls actually choose to jump overboard...one did to impress his friends and he was sober. Or people use the ship to commit suicide. I don't think your hypothesis holds water.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Sweet Dutch Girl

[connieh1968]

from another site:

 

 

• 
  
• Males are much more likely to go overboard than females
  
• Carnival passengers (33 incidents) are more likely to go overboard than passengers from other cruise lines...especially passengers on the Carnival Conquest
  
• The average age of a passenger who goes overboard is 41 years
  
• You are most likely to fall overboard on the last night of your cruise
  
• For some reason, people from California and Florida go overboard more than others
  
• Falling overboard does not necessarily mean you will die (16 people have been rescued, one after 18 hours in the water)
  
• Most people who fall overboard are either drunk or doing silly things (climbing on the railing or between cabin balconies)
  

 

 

Great...I live in Florida and going on the Conquest in May!

[chengkp75]

Yep, we used to do the same drill in the Coast Guard, we always did it in bright daylight and it still was hard to always find the dummy...who floated horizontally on the sea and not just a head. And no Coast Guard Cutter wants to lose their overboard dummy, they would never live that down.

 

We did do one drill a year at night with a dummy that had a blinking strobe light (similar to the ones we wore on our float coats - the big orange coats the Coasties wear while on deck underway, and it took us a good hour + to find those dummys...even with the light blinking. One time the moon light played havoc with the blinking light recognition.

 

I was a quartermaster (navigator) so it was my job on the bridge to get us back to the exact spot where the man overboard was sounded, if the Williamson turn was off even by a little or the wake was already washed out by waves.

 

I can imagine the jokes about losing the dummy.

 

Yes, I know the Mustang jackets you guys use, and I think they are the greatest thing since sliced bread for deck work at night. And compare that to someone possibly dressed in dark clothing at night.

 

And you guys were a cutter, where you could announce to everyone that you were doing a Williamson, and to brace for it. Can you imagine a cruise ship doing 18+ knots going hard over? With the Becker (trim tab) rudders or azipods they will heel over on their beam ends. The Norwegian Sky went hard over back in 2002-3 at sea speed and heeled 45*, causing every dish and glass onboard to fall and break, and 100 passenger were sent to Vancouver hospital for injuries. With today's GPS and ECDIS systems, I don't think the course reversal turns (there are a few) are that important anymore, since they can waypoint a spot on the electronic chart and set the ship to return to it. So, even with instant notification, they need to either slow the ship to make a tight turn, or make a large gradual turn, so that they would be 20-30 minutes just to turn around, and would have travelled 8-9 miles in that time, and allowing the search area to expand that much more.

 

PS, thanks for being a "Puddle Pirate" from one of the "Merchies" who benefits from your services. When the poop hits the fan, always good to see the orange stripe coming towards you.

Edited March 9, 2015 by chengkp75

[Luvoceans]

Great...I live in Florida and going on the Conquest in May!

 

Wow Wonder why especially on the Conquest ?