Drill without lifejackets is GREAT!

[prc]

Did a double header last week majesty 3 night and Enchantment 5 night.

 

On the Majesty we were able to do the lifeboat drill without lifejackets. What a difference! Quick & painless, go straight to sailaway and no mess getting back to drop your jackets off. Your muster station was in very big print on your seapass instead of the normal size, in order for the staff to help direct you.

 

The Captian said this should be rolled out fleet wide in the next few weeks, as the testing had been a success.

 

The reason: Oasis/Allure will have no lifejackets in the rooms! All will be in the boats and the lockers at the muster stations.

 

Felt like a step backwards getting on Enchantment and putting the vest on ;)

[balcony4u]

love it...looking forward to it in november:)

[sailingawaysoon]

Wow, that's cool that you didn't have to wear the vests. I wonder if this change will take place by the time we get on the Freedom in August? It will be nice not suffering in the heat w/the vest on. Thanks for the heads up!

[ken_nyc]

This is a great idea for those HOT & HUMID days especially standing in the direct sun. :eek:

[BroncosFan2010]

Wow! I did not know this was going on! What a nice way to do muster. Looking forward to the next one already.

[cb at sea]

Let's just hope you can make it to the lifeboat, in case of emergency! I think I'd rather have the lifejacket IN the cabin, so it could be on me, if something were to happen to the ship!

 

What if the ship listed to one side, and you couldn't access your lifeboat? (and, your lifejacket???)

[onomatopoeia]

Hmm. I can't be the only one who believes it's a good, potentially life-saving idea to require life jackets for Muster drill, can I? And whose boneheaded decision was it not to include life jackets in cabins on Oasis/Allure? What, are you supposed to scramble to a life jacket station in an emergency? Can you spell utter chaos?

 

Unless I'm missing something, count me as one who believes this is an extremely stupid idea.

[CallieS]

I just finished reading a book where an evil group of people set fire to a cruise ship and made sure the lifeboat areas were the first to go up in flames to prevent people from getting off easily. The passengers had their life jackets in the cabins and were able to jump in the water and were rescued that way.

 

I'm not saying that scenario is likely to happen in real life, but I'd like to have the jackets in my room. Why not put life jackets in both locations? Better to be safe than sorry. I also like the fact that they force me to put the jackets on during the muster drill so I get practice. I'd hate to be fumbling around in a real emergency.

[prc]

The instructions given always expressly state that unless you are already in your cabin, you should go directly to your muster station where you will be given a lifejacket. You're still going directly to your station no matter what, and you're still getting your jacket at the station.

[ken_nyc]

Let's just hope you can make it to the lifeboat, in case of emergency! I think I'd rather have the lifejacket IN the cabin, so it could be on me, if something were to happen to the ship!

 

What if the ship listed to one side, and you couldn't access your lifeboat? (and, your lifejacket???)

GREAT POINT!! :eek:

[DGNY]

The instructions given always expressly state that unless you are already in your cabin, you should go directly to your muster station where you will be given a lifejacket. You're still going directly to your station no matter what, and you're still getting your jacket at the station.

 

These were my thoughts exactly.

[aloha43]

Let's just hope you can make it to the lifeboat, in case of emergency! I think I'd rather have the lifejacket IN the cabin, so it could be on me, if something were to happen to the ship!

 

What if the ship listed to one side, and you couldn't access your lifeboat? (and, your lifejacket???)

 

I agree. That was my first thought.

[onomatopoeia]

The instructions given always expressly state that unless you are already in your cabin, you should go directly to your muster station where you will be given a lifejacket. You're still going directly to your station no matter what, and you're still getting your jacket at the station.

In a real world, emergency situation, this would never work. Imagine, during a hull breach, a shipload of passengers, all converging, en masse, to strategic locations to get their life jackets, prior to heading to their assigned raft. Even if there are only 50 passengers assigned per station it would be a logistical nightmare. Forget about an orderly procession. The panic that would ensue as passengers' natural instincts for self preservation take over will all but guarantee injuries, fights, and other mishaps in the zeal to garner a life jacket before they're all gone. Bad, bad, bad idea.

[akcruz]

The instructions given always expressly state that unless you are already in your cabin, you should go directly to your muster station where you will be given a lifejacket. You're still going directly to your station no matter what, and you're still getting your jacket at the station.

 

I agree, unless you are in your cabin, having to go from where you are to your cabin to get your jacket and then to the life muster station may be too long in a true emergency. Personally, I am not in my cabin that much so would rather get to a lifeboat/muster station and get a vest there.

 

We did a one night cruise and didn't even have to do a muster drill. That was really nice!

[houlacruiser]

Personally, I am not against not wearing the life jackets for the muster drill. I do, however, have an issue with there being no life jackets in the cabins. Are we sure this is fact that Oasis and Allure won't have them in-cabin? Seems to be a big liability for RCI to be taking...

[prc]

In a real world, emergency situation, this would never work. Imagine, during a hull breach, a shipload of passengers, all converging, en masse, to strategic locations to get their life jackets, prior to heading to their assigned raft. Even if there are only 50 passengers assigned per station it would be a logistical nightmare. Forget about an orderly procession. The panic that would ensue as passengers' natural instinct for self preservation takes over, will all but guarantee injuries, fights, and other mishaps in the zeal to garner a life jacket before they're all gone. Bad, bad, bad idea.

 

But this is what you are supposed to do anyway. If you are not already in your cabin, you are not supposed to go there to get your jacket, you are to proceed directly to your muster station and get your jacket there. This is what the procedure has always been, and that is not changing. The location you are converging to en masse is the lifeboat itself. The lifeboats themselves have always been full of jackets, and so have those big lockers right behind the boats. It's just doing what you would do if you were anywhere but your cabin...now you'll do if you were in your cabin as well.

[golfer1966]

I was a volunteer firefighter for almost 15 years and no matter how aften you practiced or drilled on a scenario, as soon as something really happened, everyone panics. I think the same will be true on a ship if it were going down very fast. I think everyone will be freakin out and trying to get on a lifeboat, no matter what number they are suppose to be on. Now, if the ship is slowly going down, and there is time to get the passengers to the correct lifeboat, Im sure they will get thier life vests. I think its best to plan for the worst case scenario and that being everyone is gonna freak and panic and the first place they will run to is the lifeboats, and not even think of the vest and in the boats is probably the best place for the vests. IMO

 

Someone made a comment "what if the ship lists".... Well, who knows when that will happen or where you will be. If this is the case, and your in the casino, you cant get back to your room anyhow. Your in your room 20% of the cruise ( sleeping ) and the odds are you will be someplace else if this occured, so if you do list and the need to get off the ship, the vests will be in the lifebooats.

 

I think this is a good idea overall.

[aloha43]

 

Someone made a comment "what if the ship lists".... Well, who knows when that will happen or where you will be. If this is the case, and your in the casino, you cant get back to your room anyhow. Your in your room 20% of the cruise ( sleeping ) and the odds are you will be someplace else if this occured, so if you do list and the need to get off the ship, the vests will be in the lifebooats.

 

I think this is a good idea overall.

 

This is untrue with some people.

 

We spend a GREAT share of time in our room, enjoying the peace and quiet away from people, enjoying the balcony and the room service.

 

I would prefer that they have life jackets in the rooms AND in the lifeboats....the way it has always been.

[onomatopoeia]

But this is what you are supposed to do anyway. If you are not already in your cabin, you are not supposed to go there to get your jacket, you are to proceed directly to your muster station and get your jacket there. This is what the procedure has always been, and that is not changing. The location you are converging to en masse is the lifeboat itself. The lifeboats themselves have always been full of jackets, and so have those big lockers right behind the boats. It's just doing what you would do if you were anywhere but your cabin...now you'll do if you were in your cabin as well.

Thanks for clarifying this as I wasn't aware jackets were on the rafts as well.

 

However, this doesn't negate the need for a Muster station drill requiring life jackets. Knowing and experiencing how to properly don a life jacket during the drill can only help during an actual emergency. And I still think it's a dumb idea not to have life jackets in the cabins and smacks of another cost-saving measure by RCCI.

[Aquahound]

Personally, I am not against not wearing the life jackets for the muster drill. I do, however, have an issue with there being no life jackets in the cabins. Are we sure this is fact that Oasis and Allure won't have them in-cabin? Seems to be a big liability for RCI to be taking...

 

I agree whole-heartedly. You can never have too many life jackets on board and I think it is stupid to not provide them in the rooms. What happens if you wake up to a ship fire at 3 am and the route to the lifeboat deck is blocked by fire? If you have to abandon ship by any means other than a life boat, the absence of a life jacket is almost a certainty for death. Even if they do away with life jackets at the drill, I really hope they still have life jackets in the rooms.

[houlacruiser]

Someone made a comment "what if the ship lists".... Well, who knows when that will happen or where you will be. If this is the case, and your in the casino, you cant get back to your room anyhow. Your in your room 20% of the cruise ( sleeping ) and the odds are you will be someplace else if this occured, so if you do list and the need to get off the ship, the vests will be in the lifebooats.

 

While I understand that the majority of most people's time is not spent in the cabin, my thought is that while people are going down the hallways in an emergency, the staff could open the cabin doors, and many would have access to the life jackets on the way to the muster stations. Those not in their cabins would (hopefully) be going straight to the muster stations and therefore not in need of the vests in their cabins. Especially if time is of the essence isn't it better to have more life jackets available down all the hallways? I know it probably wouldn't happen that way, and most are not calm/rational during these situations, but for me, I'd rather have more accessibility than less when dealing with this situation.

[prc]

I agree whole-heartedly. You can never have too many life jackets on board and I think it is stupid to not provide them in the rooms. What happens if you wake up to a ship fire at 3 am and the route to the lifeboat deck is blocked by fire? If you have to abandon ship by any means other than a life boat, the absence of a life jacket is almost a certainty for death. Even if they do away with life jackets at the drill, I really hope they still have life jackets in the rooms.

 

All I know is what the Captian said at the C&A event. The Majesty was doing the test first, and it would be rolled out fleet-wide within a few weeks. He said the test was so far a success, and that it is a must-do to make it work, as Oasis & Allure have no plans for lifejackets in the rooms. He also stated that the plan, as well as the test, were being monitored and approved by both the USCG and the Intl. Convention for SOLAS. I can see points on both sides, but personally I don't feel any safer with them in the cabin, nor will I feel more vulnerable without. I guess time will tell...

[newbiecruiser09]

The only reason that I can see for having the vests in the cabins are to account for folks (since the stateroom # is on the vest). Even is awoken at 3am, I would rather get out of my cabin and out of those very small hallways and to the muster station/lifeboats as soon as possible. As long as they have plenty of vests in the common areas and muster/boats areas it's good for me.

[Aquahound]

Having committed about a dozen years of my life to working on the ocean...in the USCG...I guess I just have a different opinion than some (though fact, not opinion). I have seen and been involved in real emergencies. I have been in the water in accidents. Even in a simulated emergency with fake smoke and no real fire, it is difficult to keep your bearings, let alone in a real fire. Trust me....if you are in your room and the ship catches fire, and you have no life jacket...I hope you're flexible because you will have to kiss your arse goodbye.

 

Just because the USCG is approving this does not mean it is the safest option. The USCG can not deny approval to a ship that is meeting minimum requirements, and it appears as though that is what RCI is striving for.

[aloha43]

Trust me....if you are in your room and the ship catches fire, and you have no life jacket...I hope you're flexible because you will have to kiss your arse goodbye.

 

That is exactly why I would want the live vests in my room.