Viking Riverboat Hits Bridge, Two Crewmembers Killed

[TravelerThom]

Even if the wheelhouse is supposed to be lowered, you can still see other things on the roof that would have not cleared the two bridges. The antenna and a/c units. Or are those things something else? Either way it's very dangerous just leaving that little clearance...

The item I see that looks like antenna is (when the picture is enlarged) actually a ladder providing access from the bridge down not the deck. Nearby is what looks like a folding table which I assume belonged to the rescue crews.

 

Since it looks to me that the wheelhouse is lodged under the second bridge, I have to assume that it was trashed by the first bridge before coming to a stop with it under the second bridge.

 

Thom

[pflorio994]

Thoughts and prayers are sent to the families of those 2 young men and to the entire Viking family

[JVilleGal]

This was posted in the Viking Facebook page for all of 5 min before Viking deleted any mention of this event.

 

 

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[JVilleGal]

Wow looks like there is clearance by only an inch or 2

 

 

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[TravelerThom]

...Since it looks to me that the wheelhouse is lodged under the second bridge, I have to assume that it was trashed by the first bridge before coming to a stop with it under the second bridge.

CORRECTION: Looking at deck plans the wheelhouse / bridge is (was) centered above the aft edge of the large restaurant & lounge window (slightly forward from the Viking logo and boat name). So NOT under the second bridge.

[Cyber Kat]

If I am correct, this is the third time in a couple of months that a Viking ship is involved. People pay good money for a Viking river cruise, but there are obviously safety issues.

 

In all fairness, one of the incidents was the Viking Mani getting hit by a barge that had broken loose in a storm. Certainly no fault of Viking's

[JVilleGal]

In all fairness, one of the incidents was the Viking Mani getting hit by a barge that had broken loose in a storm. Certainly no fault of Viking's

 

 

Exactly!

 

 

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[Cyber Kat]

Latest information is that the railings and wheelhouse were not lowered as is standard procedure on the RMD canal. The canal is closed to all traffic.

 

Looks like they were preparing - the railings and the canopies were lowered. Perhaps the mechanism that lowers the bridge had a problem. I can't imagine anyone thinking the bridge would clear and deliberately continuing.

 

 

 

We just got back from a Rhine river cruise with Viking. In one of the locks, the water had risen and the gate opened for us to go. We started forward, stopped abruptly, then backed up. It was evident even from our balcony that the ship wasn't going to clear the gate with everything up. We could hear them putting all the railings etc down before we proceeded.

[suzyluvs2cruise]

A tragic event. Thoughts and prayers to the families of the two crew members who lost their lives.

[Viking Cruises]

To everyone who has inquired about the Viking Freya accident, thank you very much for your thoughts and concerns. The families of our crew members are in our thoughts and prayers right now. Because this is a continuing situation, we have placed a statement with more details on our website, and we will keep it updated in the coming days. Please feel free to check back for updates, and thank you again for your understanding during this difficult time.

 

http://www.vikingrivercruises.com/my-trip/about-my-cruise/current-sailings.html

[mimmy52]

What a terrible tragedy! How horrible for the two crew members and their families.

[Cyber Kat]

Not aimed just at your quote, but I think this is probably a time to save uninformed opions until the inquest reports are in.

 

The authorities will consider all aspects of this accident from the training of the crew on duty to those responsible for maintaining the water level etc. so we will not have to guess as to the reasons for the accident...

 

If the crew did not have sufficient experience to be on bridge duty in control of the ship then that will be in the report.

 

Two people have died, let's wait for the professional reports before we start blaming their lack of experience for their own demise as this is going to be very hurtful to their families on top of their natural grief at this time...

 

Thank you

[boatbunny]

As a former 8 year US based former Viking employee, who lived on one of the Viking ships on the Danube for a month as part of a work study program, and have had the distinct pleasure of taking over 8 Viking cruises, I feel the need to speak out. First, my deepest sympathies to the crew members, family, friends snd colleagues of the victims.

 

Viking does and always has employed the most qualified, professional and dedicated personnel on their ships. The Captains ( and I've met several and served as a temporary crew member) take their positions extremely seriously . You will NEVER see a Captain or First Officer acting in any type of unprofessional manner, including even having a glass of wine at dinner, they are served apple juice for any public toasting event, their interaction with passengers is minimal because their focus is making sure passengers, crew and the ship are always safe. They have to make decisions based on safety that are sometimes not too popular with the passengers, they need to balance comfort, the experience with safety. And yet countless times I've seen them have to make such a decision , whether it's having to arrive or leave later from a port or skip one altogether , and be met with nothing but complaint from passengers.

 

I have worked for 2 other river cruise lines, on much shorter terms, and have witnessed completely different and drastic conduct. Captains and executive crew members who were more focused on fraternizing, in a highly unprofessional way, with passengers to the point where I was concerned for the safety of all. So believe me, I've seen the comparison and would not for a split second waiver on stepping onto a Viking ship today or years from now.

 

Has Viking grown fast? Yes, however being someone behind the scenes whose seen it, ship operations around the world have maintained the same level of safety , reliability, comfort and professionalism that they did with 10 ships. I will say that the growing pains are reflected in their US operations and is where the company needs to change and focus on how it's US based employees are treated therefore impacting the pre cruise experience.

 

Navigating these ships on the river is not easy . There is a lot of analysis by the Captain and his officers going on constantly. While you may think it's a leisurely sail, there is so much going on behind the scenes to insure safety and comfort, you would never suspect .

 

I won't make a guess as to what occurred with this accident, but one thing I am extremely confident about is that it was not due to unreliable , inexperienced, or lazy executive crew. There will be a lot of inaccurate speculation, and a few comments I've already seen are so ignorant and inaccurate it makes me laugh. So before you start placing blame, wait until the professionals and the accurate information is released before suggesting how this horrible tragedy occurred.

[JVilleGal]

Thank you for posting your "insiders" perspective. Always good to hear! They speaking ill of another line was not necessary in this case.

 

 

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[H2Otstr]

Something similar happened to us two years ago on our Uniworld cruise. We had left Nuremberg and the wheel house was not totally retracted, hit the bottom of a lock and was damaged. Unfortunately there was nothing more serious than a damaged wheel house; no one was injured.

 

It can happen on any cruise line.

 

Our thoughts and prayers go to the families of the two crew members who lost their lives.

[Got2Cruise]

This is the fourth accident involving Viking this year. Those who suggest to say "wait" while I agree in principle, have we ever learned the cause of the other three accidents? For those planning and researching here on Cruise Critic, yes, it is an important fact that there have been four accidents this year.

[TravelerThom]

Most accidents have a combination of causes, any one of which could be overcome but the combination turns fatal. I hope that the accident investigation focuses on avoiding similar situations in the future. This will not reverse the tragic loss of these crew members, but would make things safer in the future.

[philw1776]

Awful news. Condolences to family & friends of the deceased.

 

I sailed on the Freya back in 2014.

 

During the first few hours in a clear empty river, the ship drifted to port and actually struck the riverbank, albeit lightly. A ***? moment.

 

Later I went topside and noticed that the Freya's wheelhouse was a plywood shack. The cruise director told us that what had happened was that the wheelhouse had failed to lower when approaching a bridge and got sheared off.

 

I know ships have momentum and are hard to stop, but the V ships do have very powerful electric thrusters that seem to the layperson engineer able to do some remarkable changes in momentum.

 

I hope that the accident investigation results in new effective safety measures such that the awful events of this Sunday morning are far, far less likely to occur again.

[philw1776]

Viking's statement is here...

 

http://www.vikingrivercruises.com/my-trip/about-my-cruise/current-sailings.html

[dln929]

To everyone who has inquired about the Viking Freya accident, thank you very much for your thoughts and concerns. The families of our crew members are in our thoughts and prayers right now. Because this is a continuing situation, we have placed a statement with more details on our website, and we will keep it updated in the coming days. Please feel free to check back for updates, and thank you again for your understanding during this difficult time.

 

http://www.vikingrivercruises.com/my-trip/about-my-cruise/current-sailings.html

 

My husband and I extend our condolences during this sad time for everyone on the Freya.

[Cairn Mom]

This is the fourth accident involving Viking this year. Those who suggest to say "wait" while I agree in principle, have we ever learned the cause of the other three accidents? For those planning and researching here on Cruise Critic, yes, it is an important fact that there have been four accidents this year.

 

 

Viking is the largest line. I think it is important to remember that. We also don't know if they were at fault for this tragedy. It is known that at least one of the other three incidents was not their fault. I'm sure their safety record is very important to Viking as a bad safety record is bad for business. I am going to wait and see how this unfolds.

 

 

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[MicCanberra]

Very sad for their families and friends.:(

[Aus Traveller]

Yes - very sad for the families of those involved.

 

I cannot imagine how this sounded and felt to all on board. That is the end of the cruise for the passengers and a ship out of service, although it is late in the season so it should not impact on too many cruises.

[GUT2407]

Dreadful news

[MicCanberra]

It was lucky more people didn't get hurt or worse.