Caribbean Princess Stopped Offshore Mexico

[trabeler]

Onboard the CB now. 7 am this morning Captain announced ship was turning around to provide assistance to a small craft with a few people onboard that were waving flags as we passed. We're approximately 23 miles offshore Mexico on route to Roatan.

 

Would upload a picture but can't figure out the new tapatalk yet...

[trabeler]

8:30 am update - Captain just announced there are 12 people onboard from Cuba who left there a month ago and have been drifting. Some are in need of medical assistance. We will provide food and water and wait in position until the Mexican coast guard arrives in approximately 2 hours.

[azdmelani]

Thanks for letting us know. Hope all are ok.

[Fore on the Floor]

from the rescue

[geocruiser]

I hope that they will be OK.. A month on the open sea is a lot of time.

[Cuizer2]

How long until the demands for refunds and other compensation begin?

[ctemkg]

A month drifting in the boat shown in the picture. Small open deck, no protection from the elements. Looks like the main propulsion was a sail. Small vessel overloaded with the 12 people. That is an ordeal...

 

The Princess passengers onboard hopefully realize they played a small role in helping 12 people, possibly saving their lives.

[trabeler]

Latest update. Around 10:45 am, the people on the small boat were transferred to a Mexican coast guard ship and have departed. The small boat was left abandoned.

 

We're bringing in our small tender boat now and will be underway shortly.

[Paula_MacFan]

Thanks for the information and updates. I can't imagine being at sea on that rickety boat for a month. Glad you stopped to help them!

[OCruisers]

Glad they're been rescued. A month on that little boat had to have been an awful experience. :eek:

[Kylie]

Quite the excitement. I'm sure they were glad to see anyone stop for them.

 

That wasn't quite the nice ship you are on!

[scott4020]

Great job captain and crew. They should have plenty of time to make their stop in Roatan. She's cruising around 17 knots just past Cozumel

[TracieABD]

I was on the HAL Zuiderdam two years ago and there was a similar situation. It really tugs at my heart to see people who are so desparate. I am grateful that the maritime law requires large vessels to offer assistance.

 

I was equally grateful that I did not hear any passenger complaints abou the delay.

[gcvt]

Glad they were rescued. What an ordeal.

[eclue]

Such a wonderful thing that the Princess ship helped expedite.....

eclue:rolleyes:

[lottorus]

I was onboard also, such a surreal sight to see. After determining the situation and giving aid, the ship had to wait about 2 more hours for the coast guard to come from Mexico to pick up the people. And then they just left this homemade raft floating in the middle of the ocean as everyone went on their way! These folks were pretty lucky that the were found in time. The crew was great!!!!

[Once Upon A Time]

We were also onboard and had an interesting update from a senior officer the next day. He was clearly emotional and thankful that he had been part of saving 12 lives.. He told us that all 12 were in pretty desperate shape, but 2 in particular needed immediate medical attention, which the medical staff provided..

We supplied them with food and water... These people were urged to come onboard, but refused because they didn't want to go to Honduras (our next stop), but to Merida, Mexico. We agreed to wait with them until the Mexican Coast Guard arrived to take them onboard.. Their small boat was actually breaking up as they were being loaded onto the Mexican craft.

 

The officer we spoke with said that this was the first rescue at sea for him in the 24 years he'd been sailing.. He was very concerned that the group had no lights, nothing onboard that radar could have detected and had been drifting for several weeks.. Any large ship would have run right over them at night and there were also a couple of pretty good storms in the area they were drifting during that time....Their small motor had caught fire a few days out of Cuba and they dumped it to keep the boat from burning..

 

Just amazing that our spotters on the bridge saw them 3 miles away, waving for help..

[eltigre]

others from a different cruise line that were sailing pretty much the same itinerary as ours. They too spotted the craft & stopped to assess the situation. The craft was empty.

Which makes me wonder how many others stopped to find an abandoned boat set adrift.

 

Although made of huge chunks of Styrofoam (which will never disintegrate) wood & a metal mast which would make towing the 23 miles to shore difficult, the option to leave it at sea was of concern to me.

 

Wishing those rescued all the best and kudos to all of us on the Caribbean Princess. It's so heartwarming to see the compassion that all the passengers were displaying.