Disabled/Impaired Cruiser Safety - Please Read

[SargassoPirate]

As a former professional firefighter, former member of the NFPA committee on life safety, and safety official for a medium-sized federal agency with responsibility for implementing the ADA requirements for a range of occupancy types and planning for emergency evacuation of those buildings, I urge all cruisers with some form of disability or impairment to read and be aware of the National Fire Protection Associations guide for such situations. The guide can be found as a free downloadable PDF document here:

 

http://www.nfpa.org/safety-information/for-consumers/populations/people-with-disabilities

 

Persons with disabilities or impairments need to be aware of ways to ensure they can evacuate or be evacuated safely in the event of an emergency at sea. When you book a cruise, make sure the cruise line is aware of your disability or impairment so that arrangements can be made for your safety and possible emergency evacuation. If you need assistance moving to an area of safe refuge – such as your muster station – ask the cruise line what sort of policies and practices it has in place to assist you in the event of an emergency.

 

All cruisers should be aware that parking mobility devices in corridors, stairway/elevator lobbies, exit access corridors, is a violation of SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) requirements and presents a hazard to other occupants. SOLAS requires that paths of exit travel be kept clear of obstructions - including corridors, stairways, stairway and elevator lobbies, fire doors, etc. There are no exceptions for only one or two scooters. Parking a scooter, a wheelchair, a walker, or even a baby buggy in a corridor or stairway/elevator lobby should not be allowed and if it is being allowed, the cruise line is being negligent regarding fire safety.

 

Fire safety requirements are for everyone's protection. If your cruise line is being negligent regarding your safety by allowing others to obstruct your path of safe exit travel with their improperly parked/stored personal mobility devices, it should be reported to the guest relations desk immediately and if corrective action is not forthcoming, report it to the corporate level.

 

As a former professional firefighter who has, on more than one occasion, zipped a fire victim into a body bag, I can safely say that it's the seemingly innocuous things that cause loss of life during fire emergencies.

 

Please be aware and protect yourself and others.

[searoses]

Scooters and wheelchairs have been around a long time....I don't understand why ships don't have a spot to safely store them outside public venues.....I have given up asking and just try to leave it as far away from the foot traffic as possible...would never leave anything out in the cabin halls..,they are narrow enough as it is...,safety first!!

[SargassoPirate]

Scooters and wheelchairs have been around a long time....I don't understand why ships don't have a spot to safely store them outside public venues.....I have given up asking and just try to leave it as far away from the foot traffic as possible...would never leave anything out in the cabin halls..,they are narrow enough as it is...,safety first!!

 

I agree, safety first. Since most cruise lines don't seem to enforce keeping the corridors clear at night, I wonder if there were mobility devices parked in the corridors on the fateful Anthem of the Seas cruise recently and if so, what was the outcome.

[GillCC]

I would NEVER leave my wheelchair/scooter outside my cabin but there has been times when I have needed to leave my chair to use a pool or hot tub or sun lounger and have been instructed to move it! Just because I use a mobility device doesn't mean my bottom needs to be firmly attached to it at all times lol. I also wish they enforced this with the cleaning carts!

[SargassoPirate]

I would NEVER leave my wheelchair/scooter outside my cabin but there has been times when I have needed to leave my chair to use a pool or hot tub or sun lounger and have been instructed to move it! Just because I use a mobility device doesn't mean my bottom needs to be firmly attached to it at all times lol. I also wish they enforced this with the cleaning carts!

 

Gil, I can't imagine being asked to move a scooter while you are out and about using the ship facilities unless the scooter was blocking an aisle or passageway.

[RuthC]

...unless the scooter was blocking an aisle or passageway.

Add fire door, and access to emergency equipment to that.

 

I have seen scooters parked off to the side, but the fire door track ran right underneath it. One also has to take a look at the wall right next to where they park a scooter or wheelchair to note if there is an indication of a fire extinguisher (or similar) behind a panel.

[Chunky2219]

I'm pretty confident that if I'm ever on a ship in difficulty, the greatest threat to my survival will be the service carts, laundry carts and badly discarded room service trays that prevent a wheelchair passing freely along corridors.

 

I suspect that all the scooter jockeys will have hopped on, wound the speed dial up to max and cleared off before I get anywhere near. Watch out for me, I'll be the one going down the crew service steps backwards in a wheelchair or going up the stairs on my backside to safety.

 

 

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[raindropsalways]

I'm pretty confident that if I'm ever on a ship in difficulty, the greatest threat to my survival will be the service carts, laundry carts and badly discarded room service trays that prevent a wheelchair passing freely along corridors.

 

I suspect that all the scooter jockeys will have hopped on, wound the speed dial up to max and cleared off before I get anywhere near. Watch out for me, I'll be the one going down the crew service steps backwards in a wheelchair or going up the stairs on my backside to safety.

 

Relax Chunky; no experienced scooter driver is going to travel at rabbit speed. We know better. In an emergency, proceed with caution! It is the novelist that has a scooter so they will not scuff their shoes that is dangerous. Of course, we may rev up the power a bit to push the non-essential stuff out of our way.

 

Betty

 

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[GillCC]

Gil, I can't imagine being asked to move a scooter while you are out and about using the ship facilities unless the scooter was blocking an aisle or passageway.

Glad you can't imagine it but it has happened to me 3 times and at no point was it an obstruction to anyone include fire safety equipment!