Shore excursion safety

[K32682]

Do you ever consider personal safety while on a cruise-organized shore excursion?

 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/new-zealand-volcano-eruption-1.5388985

 

"A volcanic island in New Zealand erupted Monday in a tower of ash and steam while dozens of tourists were exploring the moon-like surface, killing five people and leaving more missing.

 

New Zealanders and overseas tourists were among those who were dead, missing or injured. Most of the 18 survivors were injured and some had suffered severe burns, he said.

 

Some of those involved were tourists from the Royal Caribbean International cruise ship Ovation of the Seas."

[Nic6318]

Hi

 

So, what is it you are suggesting? Should we debate getting out of bed each morning? 

[VMax1700]

4 minutes ago, Nic6318 said:

Hi

 

So, what is it you are suggesting? Should we debate getting out of bed each morning? 

Even that is dangerous as so many accidents happen in the home.

Perhaps we should just give up totally. 🙄

[dogs4fun]

Very tragic but extremely rare incident - our thoughts & prayers are with the passengers of the Ovation of the Seas. We have DIY a few volcanoes including Kilauea, Maunaloa, Mt. Etna & Vesuvius - never gave a thought to an eruption occurring while we were visiting.

 

Edited December 9, 2019 by dogs4fun

[kerryincork]

A volcano exploded a very rare occurrence. You are much more likely to be killed in traffic accidents while on a tour. But people don't consider this to be a risk.

[K32682]

There were warning signs and hazard alert levels increased in recent weeks.  This story is dated November 17

 

https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/volcanic-activity-ramps-up-whakaari-white-island-prompting-hazard-warning

 

"In a statement, GNS Science says the volcanic alert level has now been raised to a Level 2 and the aviation colour code is now yellow.

 

“Volcanic unrest continues at Whakaari/White Island and some monitored parameters show further increases in activity," the agency said. "Hazards on the island are now greater than during the past few weeks.

 

“The patterns of signals are similar to those through the 2011 - 2016 period and suggest that Whakaari/White Island may be entering a period where eruptive activity is more likely than normal.

[cruisemom42]

While there was increased volcanic activity, it was stated this morning that there were no signs that an eruption such as what occurred was imminent.

 

I have traveled around the globe, many times solo, and have never felt the risks were any greater than those I face on my daily hour-long commute to and from work in a large heavily-trafficked city. 

[evandbob]

New Zealand and Iceland and many other parts of the world are subject to occasional volcanic and seismic activity, but I would still venture there again.

 

What I can do to ward off calamity is not to take selfies with wild animals, or on the edge of a cliff, get drunk in a foreign land and other stupid tourist stuff.

 

I control what I can, mainly myself, and let the other stuff be.

[Zach1213]

1 hour ago, K32682 said:

Do you ever consider personal safety while on a cruise-organized shore excursion?

 

I consider my personal safety in everything I do. But I'm also a math geek who loves figuring out the odds, and I have never let something with a minuscule odd stand in the way of a life experience. If it's my time, it's my time. 

[ger_77]

Although the threat level had increased, it certainly wasn't expected that an eruption would occur.  People take chances every day, whether at home or on vacation; sometimes there is less thought put into the danger level of a situation, figuring someone else has our safety in mind.  Frequently, people on vacation will throw caution to the wind, experiencing things they normally wouldn't in their daily lives.

 

I wish only the best for all involved.

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂

[K32682]

Was RCI aware of the increased threat level?  Were passengers informed?  It's one thing to take a risk knowing what the risk is but quite another to be unknowingly put in harm's way because the people taking your money didn't tell you. 

[Cruiser_1977]

I absolutely think about the inherent risks in everything I do. However, it's about weighing the risk/reward and making a decision. 

[sparks1093]

One of my favorite quotes from the movie "Little Big Man" is- "Life contains a particle of risk, my boy."

[c-boy]

 O P, am I to gather that you are inferring the RCI knowingly put their passengers at risk ?

[sanger727]

Yes, I consider my safety on shore excursions. I consider my safety in everything I do. But I still try to live my life and enjoy experiences. You just have to make the best judgement you can with the information you have. This seems to be a bit of a freak occurrence so I'm not sure that any amount of good judgement would have prevented people from being there. When I saw the title of the post I was thinking more in line with not wandering around in Belize City by yourself or being in shady areas of mexico after dark.

 

We did have an experience with a volcano in Hawaii, but it was in line with making the best decision we could with the info we had. We knew that one of the volcanos on the big island was having more eruptions and activity than normal. But the immediate vicinity to where this was occurring was shut down and we had no intentions of going near it (mostly due to the air quality). We did go to the volcano national park because it was open and had no increased activity. While we were there we passed by one of the large vents and took pictures and it was emitting the normal amount of steam it emits. As we continued through the park we were near a large canyon type area and we felt an earth quake that was followed up by a rock slide in that canyon. At point we were a bit more nervous but continued on. As we headed towards the next stop we saw tour buses stopped on the side of the road. We stopped to see what they were looking at. That vent we had stopped by that had been emitting a bit of steam was now emitting an enormous cloud of black/orange smoke. That was enough for us and everyone on the tour agreed that it was time to leave. Luckily, there was no eruption there and no one was hurt. Since we were on a small group tour and everyone voted to leave, the guide accommodated us. I did find out later from the people on the cruise ship excursion that they did not leave after that. Eventually the park was closed by the park service and at that point the cruise ship excursion left. Overall, it was scary at the time. But there were no warning signs indicating that it was unsafe to be there before we went. And then were flexible enough to decide to leave early when warning signs started popping up. Think that's about all you can do unless you want to lock yourself in your house and take absolutely no risk at all. Staying on the cruise ship would have been risky even in this situation. A full blown eruption would have released a lot of toxic gas in the air. And as we returned to the ship we found out that everything around it was closed due to Tsunami risks after that earth quake.

 

[calliopecruiser]

I always consider my personal safety, and shore excursions aren't any different (though I rarely take organized shore excursions)......but I very rarely worry about my personal safety, and shore excursions aren't any different. 

[donaldsc]

4 hours ago, dogs4fun said:

Very tragic but extremely rare incident - our thoughts & prayers are with the passengers of the Ovation of the Seas. We have DIY a few volcanoes including Kilauea, Maunaloa, Mt. Etna & Vesuvius - never gave a thought to an eruption occurring while we were visiting.

 

 

This is a quote from another site on the volcano -

 

"White Island is one of several volcanoes in New Zealand that can produce sudden explosive eruptions at any time. In this case, magma is shallow, and the heat and gases affect surface and ground water to form vigorous hydrothermal systems.

In these, water is trapped in pores of rocks in a super-heated state. Any external process, such as an earthquake, gas input from below, or even a change in the lake water level can tip this delicate balance and release the pressure on the hot and trapped water.

The resulting steam-driven eruption, also called a hydrothermal or phreatic eruption, can happen suddenly and with little to no warning. The expansion of water into steam is supersonic in speed and the liquid can expand to 1,700 times its original volume. This produces catastrophic impacts."

 

DON

[nascarcruiser]

I seriously doubt you can connect what happened back to Royal Caribbean  putting people at risk.  Mother Nature is quite unpredictable 

[K32682]

5 minutes ago, nascarcruiser said:

I seriously doubt you can connect what happened back to Royal Caribbean  putting people at risk.  Mother Nature is quite unpredictable 

 

Volcanoes are somewhat predictable.  Please read post #6.  Threat levels on that island had been increased the month before. 

[nascarcruiser]

Just now, K32682 said:

 

Volcanoes are somewhat predictable.  Please read post #6.  Threat levels on that island had been increased the month before. 

Again they are unpredictable in the fact increased threat levels do not indicate when it is actually going to happen.   It could be the day it happened or a year from now.   I feel sorry for those involved but you can't blame the cruise line.   If they had skipped the port people would be upset as well.  Mother Nature is fickle and unpredictable 

[donaldsc]

1 hour ago, K32682 said:

 

Volcanoes are somewhat predictable.  Please read post #6.  Threat levels on that island had been increased the month before. 

 

Read my #17.

 

DON

[clo]

5 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

"Life contains a particle of risk, my boy."

THIS^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[ldubs]

10 hours ago, K32682 said:

Do you ever consider personal safety while on a cruise-organized shore excursion?

 

 

There have been some times where I have given it some thought, but in all cases it was a concern about criminal activity instead of natural hazards.  We have had excursions cancelled because of violence towards tourists.  Not too long ago we changed an upcoming flight from Hong Kong to Singapore due to the situation there.   

[mom says]

5 hours ago, K32682 said:

 

Volcanoes are somewhat predictable.  Please read post #6.  Threat levels on that island had been increased the month before. 

The threat level was raised from 1 to 2 on a scale that goes to 5. Not that alarming  IMO. But hindsight is wonderful. What happened was terrible for all of the people involved, but anyone who voluntarily goes into a volcano that is not extinct must be aware that they are assuming at least some risk. The entire country is at risk of earthquakes, some of which have been catastrophic. Didn't stop us from an extended stay there, including Christchurch. We look at risks. But we also weigh the probabilities of those risks.

[Bizmark'sMom]

I buckle my seatbelt, if there is one. I keep my eyes open for criminal behavior. I check the state department for travel advisories. I do not worry about natural disasters.