Modified E-Muster

[Silkroad]

11 minutes ago, MamaFej said:

This is why I have suggested not activating passenger accounts for purchasing drinks, making reservations, etc. until after they have checked into the muster station.

 

Alternatively, instead of placing sea passes at the door to the cabin, distribute them in the muster station. Then people have no choice but to go there before they can drop off their bags or use their cabin at all. 

The muster stations are not staffed during the first hour or so of boarding. I want to drop my bag in my cabin and acquire water and espresso during that period. 
 

I think people who don’t turn up at their muster station by the deadline should be thrown off the ship. 

[CaptFantastic]

Last week on the Apex we didn't even have to watch the video, just checked in at our station. I thought they would ask for some kind of proof that we watched it, but nope.

[MamaFej]

13 minutes ago, Silkroad said:

The muster stations are not staffed during the first hour or so of boarding. I want to drop my bag in my cabin and acquire water and espresso during that period. 
 

I think people who don’t turn up at their muster station by the deadline should be thrown off the ship. 

Interesting.

 

They have been staffed on each of the 6 X cruises, 2 Princess cruises, and 5 other cruises I've done since the restart. On our B2Bs, we've checked in before the new folks came on board. 

 

Perhaps the ships that aren't staffing right away will do so in the future. 

[MamaFej]

14 minutes ago, CaptFantastic said:

Last week on the Apex we didn't even have to watch the video, just checked in at our station. I thought they would ask for some kind of proof that we watched it, but nope.

In my experience, the handheld devices the crew who check you in show whether or not the video has been watched. Maybe it's another example of inconsistency. 

[NevadaCruiser2023]

I think anything is better than the cattle call feeling of the old muster drills. 

[NevadaCruiser2023]

35 minutes ago, Silkroad said:

The muster stations are not staffed during the first hour or so of boarding. I want to drop my bag in my cabin and acquire water and espresso during that period. 
 

I think people who don’t turn up at their muster station by the deadline should be thrown off the ship. 

Probably a little too draconian for my tastes.  How about requiring them to be last to board a lifeboat in the event of an abandon ship?

[prmssk]

36 minutes ago, CaptFantastic said:

Last week on the Apex we didn't even have to watch the video, just checked in at our station. I thought they would ask for some kind of proof that we watched it, but nope.

The Celebrity app tracks that you have done each step in the process (video, listen to horn, muster station). After checking in at the muster station, we always open the app to make sure that third part shows complete. I would assume watching the video in your stateroom would also record that you did it. 
 

(On Princess, we learned that only those who have their medallion in the stateroom, and it must be in your assigned stateroom, when the video runs get credit for it.)

 

The technology is aldrin place to track this.  

[jean87510]

This may work for those stragglers.

[cdn_tbird]

7 hours ago, Silkroad said:

I think people who don’t turn up at their muster station by the deadline should be thrown off the ship. 

I don't think you need to throw them all off. Just randomly pick 2 cabins and disembark everyone in them. If they broadcast it on all the screens available especially those giant ones on the pool deck. I'll bet you that all the other stragglers would be tripping all over themselves scrambling to get their muster station. 

 

You could even record the wild scramble and feature it as a comedy night in the main theater. 🤣🤣🤣

[Torfamm]

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

My experience in Muster 2.0 at the muster station the agent gives you a quick individual 30 second review and shows how to put on life jacket.

 

While I don't know for sure but I think what may have induced lines to bring back traditional drill is customers not following instructions.    Usually starting 2 hours plus you keep hearing announcements for passengers to complete the simple drill.  We have even been delayed due to non-compliance of some irresponsible passengers while they trace them down.

On a full sailing Discovery Princess this week they were periodically announcing exactly how many passengers had not complied. It was over 2200 at the 90 minute mark and still close to 500 less than 30 minutes before sail away. I was astonished. 

[Ipeeinthepools]

Here’s my solution.  I would add an additional stop before boarding and make it like a Disney attraction.  Before you board you would enter a separate holding area and watch the video and you are scanned when you leave.   You then need to stop by your muster station to get checked in.  It’s a shame we can’t get better voluntary compliance.

[Georgia_Peaches]

20 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

as I've noted many times, in the new e-muster drill, the crew lose all realistic training of a passenger muster (thousands of pax moving at once, recalcitrant pax), and the passengers themselves lose the training of getting to their muster station at the same time as thousands of others, rather than a serene saunter to the station at a time of their choosing.  It is certainly not a cheaper alternative.

I watched a documentary on the Costa Concordia disaster and I noted that there seemed to be complete chaos on the ship as passengers tried to evacuate.  Presumably, the passengers all engaged in the traditional muster drill upon embarkation but when their "unlikely event of the need to abandon ship" became clearly imminent, it seemed as though many, many passengers (not all) forgot everything...even where to muster.  Passengers hopped into lifeboats on a first available basis.  I'm sure the Concordia fiasco has been studied by maritime officials at length.  My question for you, as the resident expert (and that's a compliment), when the rubber meets the road, how much of the safety briefing presented upon embarkation is actually adhered to by passengers in the event of a real emergency?  Parents, for example, who are separated from their children who are in kids' club may find it very difficult to resist the urge to go and get them as opposed to meeting them at their muster station...People in the Costa Concordia documentary were scattered in every direction once they realized the seriousness of the situation...fascinating and scary.

[TeeRick]

1 minute ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

I watched a documentary on the Costa Concordia disaster and I noted that there seemed to be complete chaos on the ship as passengers tried to evacuate.  Presumably, the passengers all engaged in the traditional muster drill upon embarkation but when their "unlikely event of the need to abandon ship" became clearly imminent, it seemed as though many, many passengers (not all) forgot everything...even where to muster.  Passengers hopped into lifeboats on a first available basis.  I'm sure the Concordia fiasco has been studied by maritime officials at length.  My question for you, as the resident expert (and that's a compliment), when the rubber meets the road, how much of the safety briefing presented upon embarkation is actually adhered to by passengers in the event of a real emergency?  Parents, for example, who are separated from their children who are in kids' club may find it very difficult to resist the urge to go and get them as opposed to meeting them at their muster station...People in the Costa Concordia documentary were scattered in every direction once they realized the seriousness of the situation...fascinating and scary.

In a real emergency I think a lot of passengers are in panic mode and forget everything that they were taught in the muster drill.  That is why the crew needs to be prepared for this chaos.

[chengkp75]

39 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

I watched a documentary on the Costa Concordia disaster and I noted that there seemed to be complete chaos on the ship as passengers tried to evacuate. 

People who watched the Concordia documentaries need to balance this by reading the official report by the Italian Maritime Authority.  The real problem, and what caused the confusion, was the fact that Schettino never sounded the alarm for the passenger muster, and so the crew followed their orders and sent passengers away from the muster stations, and the boats were never prepped and lowered until too late.  The ship did not start to list more than the limit the boats could be lowered at (20* list), until it touched bottom again on Giglio, and the grounding point became the fulcrum for rolling over.  That was more than an hour after Schettino was notified that the ship was flooding.  Had muster been sounded at that point (at that point he knew there was nothing that could save the ship from sinking), passengers would have been mustered and accounted for, and the boats prepped and ready to load long before the ship rolled over.

 

Whether or not the passengers adhere to the safety procedures, this is why the crew training aspect is so valuable, so that the crew know exactly how to handle situations like having the kids separated from  parents, etc.  The e-muster takes away any chance for realistic training of the crew in handling large, unruly crowds.

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

People who watched the Concordia documentaries need to balance this by reading the official report by the Italian Maritime Authority.  The real problem, and what caused the confusion, was the fact that Schettino never sounded the alarm for the passenger muster, and so the crew followed their orders and sent passengers away from the muster stations, and the boats were never prepped and lowered until too late.  The ship did not start to list more than the limit the boats could be lowered at (20* list), until it touched bottom again on Giglio, and the grounding point became the fulcrum for rolling over.  That was more than an hour after Schettino was notified that the ship was flooding.  Had muster been sounded at that point (at that point he knew there was nothing that could save the ship from sinking), passengers would have been mustered and accounted for, and the boats prepped and ready to load long before the ship rolled over.

 

Whether or not the passengers adhere to the safety procedures, this is why the crew training aspect is so valuable, so that the crew know exactly how to handle situations like having the kids separated from  parents, etc.  The e-muster takes away any chance for realistic training of the crew in handling large, unruly crowds.

Thank you for this explanation.  This makes a lot of sense and given the circumstances, I understand how e-muster really falls short.  

[Cruise Raider]

They’ve had the E-muster on Princess since the restart and there’s currently been no talk about moving it back to the gathering in a room for the process.  But, if and when it happens, I guess we will all know about it.  

[D. B.]

23 hours ago, stellarose said:

I hate the old way.

Hey I'm so Old I remember when Everyone had to Put On your Life Vest and go out (Even in rain and Cold) and Stand Next to Your assigned  Lifeboat !

 At least we didn't have to climb in and  demonstrate we knew how to Row?

Edited January 27, 2023 by D. B.
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