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Escape currently stuck on a sand bar leaving Puerto Plata

Javajitterz

By Javajitterz,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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oteixeira

oteixeira

Posted
Posted
Just now, jeremyosborne81 said:

Do they use a pilot? Is this the pilot's fault?

I am not on board but they would have to use a pilot by law if I am not mistaken, and they would have been on board until they hit the open seas, so my guess is yes, and yes.

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chloemonkey

chloemonkey

Posted
Posted

That is SO weird as we were in that port last week and I mentioned to my husband that the amount of "space" for these ships to maneuver in and out of seemed really narrow....as I think this was the first port that I have been in that you also had waves breaking onto shore right next to the ships transit area.....anyway hope they figure it out quickly and everyone is able to continue on their vacations on schedule.

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Anton

Anton

Posted
Posted

My understanding is that the pilot only has responsibility for ships transiting the Panama Canal and maybe one other place, and in all other ports the Captain is still responsible even if a pilot is aboard and on the bridge. 

 

My immediate concern with this event is the status of the azipods which are essentially outboard motors sticking down out of the hull.

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vicnsue

vicnsue

Posted
Posted
21 minutes ago, Anton said:

My immediate concern with this event is the status of the azipods which are essentially outboard motors sticking down out of the hull.

We are on the April 2 sailing. She had two operational azipods when you left Port Canaveral, please return her in the same condition!  

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GeezerCouple Holiday Sharing Rare

GeezerCouple

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Anton said:

My understanding is that the pilot only has responsibility for ships transiting the Panama Canal and maybe one other place, and in all other ports the Captain is still responsible even if a pilot is aboard and on the bridge. 

 

My immediate concern with this event is the status of the azipods which are essentially outboard motors sticking down out of the hull.

 

I've always wondered about this:  For certain sections, the local Pilot is on board to give directions based upon local conditions (or ??).  But the Captain is still responsible.  So can the Captain tell the Pilot some version of, "Thanks, but no thanks, I'd rather do it MY way!" ?

 

Maybe Chengkp75 will find this thread and help us learn a bit more about how this actually works.

 

Did anyone post a photo of the narrow channel?

 

On the NCL Sun, coming out of Hubbard Glacier (Alaska), the ship really, REALLY seemed to be heading to the port side of a very narrow little island, to a teeny tiny channel, but the channel we came IN on was starboard.  And it kept heading "the wrong way"... and getting closer and closer to that tiny channel.  And then it was *obvious* that it was TOO LATE!!  Except, we were just gliding through this incredibly narrow channel between a thin island thing and the shore... while the main channel was on the other side of the thin island.

It was really dramatic!  🙂

And we did *not* get stuck!

But it really, really, seemed like that was going to happen.  We had a forward facing suite right over the Bridge so we got a very good view of it all.

Pretty amazing!

 

GC

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HBCcruiser "Live from...." Rare

HBCcruiser

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

I've always wondered about this:  For certain sections, the local Pilot is on board to give directions based upon local conditions (or ??).  But the Captain is still responsible.  So can the Captain tell the Pilot some version of, "Thanks, but no thanks, I'd rather do it MY way!" ?

 

Maybe Chengkp75 will find this thread and help us learn a bit more about how this actually works.

 

Did anyone post a photo of the narrow channel?

 

On the NCL Sun, coming out of Hubbard Glacier (Alaska), the ship really, REALLY seemed to be heading to the port side of a very narrow little island, to a teeny tiny channel, but the channel we came IN on was starboard.  And it kept heading "the wrong way"... and getting closer and closer to that tiny channel.  And then it was *obvious* that it was TOO LATE!!  Except, we were just gliding through this incredibly narrow channel between a thin island thing and the shore... while the main channel was on the other side of the thin island.

It was really dramatic!  🙂

And we did *not* get stuck!

But it really, really, seemed like that was going to happen.  We had a forward facing suite right over the Bridge so we got a very good view of it all.

Pretty amazing!

 

GC

@chengkp75 Can you shed some light on this?

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Middleager

Middleager

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, Jimbo said:

Usually when this happens, everyone jumps out of the boat and just push the boat off the sand bar? What gives?

After everyone jumps off the boat, the boat would be light enough to float without them pushing.  They'll need to jump back in quickly before the boat moves too far away.

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Coastalbreezes

Coastalbreezes

Posted
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7 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Captain has only been on a ship for a week (really).

Your comment makes it sound like Captain Giovanni is a newbie. In fact, he has been at the helm of Escape for years and is quite experienced (really). Reports from friends on board indicate that heavy winds were involved as the ship departed Puerto Plata. This morning, trackers show Escape currently docked in St. Thomas.

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shof515 "Live from...." Rare

shof515

Posted
Posted

Because of the Escape is at the pier , the Encore is now docked at Carnival Amber Cove port area which is near Puerto Plata

 

The Carnival Horizon ship was suppose to dock at Amber Cove today and now it appears they can not is a few miles away from the harbor

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