How does HAL do it's muster drills?

[DrivesLikeMario]

RCI makes you stand outside on deck, packing in like sardines. Princess has the drills in the comfortable, air conditioned lounges. How does HAL do it? What time is it typically done and where?

Thanks for the info.!

[spcl4cs_gal]

Count on standing out on the deck packed in like sardines around 4:15pm the day of a 5pm sailing. :)

[DrivesLikeMario]

Darn! I hate those kind of drills! :o(

[peaches from georgia]

I'd rather have this muster drill practice and know where I had to go and how to get there if we really had to go to our life boat stations. I don't think you'd be going to an air-conditioned lounge to catch a life boat in a real emergency. :)

[sail7seas]

Darn! I hate those kind of drills! :o(

I like it just fine that HAL makes these drills mandatory and takes attendance. In the event of an emergency, hopefully, because the drill took place with everyone at their lifeboat station....we should know where to go and could get there quickly.

[Cruiseoften]

:eek: Far as I'm concerned, outside on deck, seeing the lifeboat I'd be in in an emergency, is preferable to being in an air conditioned lounge. We've done things that way and passengers were more interested in trying to get a drink than listening to what was being said.

Look at it this way - 10 minutes out of your cruise may be just what will save your life!

[RuthC]

Fortunately, HAL takes lifeboat drill very seriously. I say "fortunately" because it was not long after my first cruise that the Prinsendam went down (relax---the last Prinsendam) and I realized what can happen.

You are expected to don your life jacket correctly then assemble at your assigned boat---men to the rear, women and children toward the front.
Attendance is taken, then information about the boat and evacuation procedures is given. It takes 15 minutes or so---depending on how cooperative the passengers are in arriving.

On a longer cruise another lifeboat drill will be held. New information is given at these subsequent drills that gets quite intertesting.

[jhannah]

Rehearsal is the best way to learn something. Just hearing about it isn't really the same. I, too, would rather go through the physical motions I'd need to take in case of an emergency ... especially since I board the Prinsendam on Monday! (I just finished packing, and we'll head for the airport at 8:30 in the morning.) :)

[Tinknock50]

Rehearsal is the best way to learn something. Just hearing about it isn't really the same. I, too, would rather go through the physical motions I'd need to take in case of an emergency ... especially since I board the Prinsendam on Monday! (I just finished packing, and we'll head for the airport at 8:30 in the morning.) :)
Bon Voyage, jhannah!

[kryos]

Darn! I hate those kind of drills! :o(
Don't worry. It's rather painless. I had to endure two of them on my recent Zuiderdam sailing and they were much easier to deal with than I thought they would be. You're out on deck, in the hot sun ... but not for too long.

Blue skies!

--rita

[Travelitis]

I like the way Princess does it, too, but my dh is in the Navy and is trained as a firefighter on a ship, so I have my personal escort in the event of emergency. On our Rhapsody cruise out of Galveston, a passenger fainted at the lifeboat drill, and another got sick and needed attention. The ship's doctor was busy, and that was just what happened within 4 muster stations. I have no idea about the others.

[Ziggy7]

We liked being packed, we met alot of nice people at the drill and we felt good knowing that we would be preparded if necessary, we had to do this both weeks on our back to back, we met alot of fun people too!

[Randyk47]

We don't mind the drills. Can't say we're excited about them but it's part of the cruise experience and, having both experienced an emergency evacuation in a truly life threatening situation a few years ago on land, we'd rather know what to do and where to go. No doubt it can get quite uncomfortable, particularly if you're on the west side of the ship on a warm day with the sun setting. My ex just about passed out in Ft Lauderdale on the Ryndam under those circumstances. The last drill on the Oosterdam went about as well as could be expected and luckily we were on the east facing side of the ship in the shade and, most importantly, everybody showed up for our station. I've got a great picture of my DW at the drill......looks like she's already having a great cruise! :) www.geocities.com/theklugspage/ (http://www.geocities.com/theklugspage/)

[Krazy Kruizers]

We also prefer the mandatory life boat drills out on the deck. It's great that HAL takes attendance and those that don't show up will receive a letter indicating the time and place they are to report the next day for the drill.

I like knowing where my life boat is.

I thought reporting to a lounge on Princess was not a good idea as I had to search on my own to find out where my life boat was located in case of an emergency.

[doone]

I like the way HAL handles their drill as well. At least if there is an emergency, you will know exactly where my life boat is. I don't care if you have a personal escort or not, you need to know exactly where that life boat is located, and I'll bet is not going to be in the air conditioned luxury of one of the lounges!!!!

[CaptData]

I do not care where it is held. I always look for my number and go to it after boarding. When the drill comes I go early (Wheelchair). I also check that the Purser's Desk knows I may need assistance. I usually stay on the floor a half hour after the drill so that Ican get an elevator back to my roo.

Then I start enjoying myself at the sailaway party.

[Host Walt]

A difference that was not mentioned directly is that, on the HAL drill, the lifeboats are lowered and the boats are demonstrated so that, not only do you know where to go, you know what you can expect to see and do because it is demonstrated fully.

The one important matter that I feel should be considered is that there is no evacuation drill for either the dining room or the show lounge. The lower level of the dining room has no easy exits into the ship, just two narrow exits to the deck. If an emergency occurred during dining hours or during the shows, it could be a messy process.

I too like the fact that HAL takes the process very seriously and, despite having done it many times, I still feel better having gone through the process each time.

[tomc]

My guess is, should there be an emergency during the meal, every waiter would automatically go to his assigned post and you would be out of there in about 90 seconds, same standard as an airplane. Just a guess. Probably the same for the main theater.

[RevNeal]

Randyk47,

I want to thank you both for your website. I've just spent quite a while reading it, including your 9.11.01 page of memories from the attack on the Pentagon. God bless you both.

[RevNeal]

Yes, it IT true ... on HAL they DO still announce "Women and Children First." On the Statendam to Hawaii I remember one couple who continually griped about it, and the male of the couple (I won't call this weasel a "man") kept saying -- loudly and obnoxiously -- that in the event of a real emergency there was no way he would be waiting until all the women and children were aboard before he boarded ... that it was "a barbaric, archaic, and sexist rule." He made sure he said it loudly enough for EVERYONE in our section to hear.

One of the ship's Dutch officers heard it, and waited until the drill was over and people were leaving. I then noticed that he came through the crowd, intercepted the fellow, and said to him, politely but sternly and in no-nonsense tones -- and, might I add, loud enough for many of us who had been standing nearby to hear -- "Sir, I will be captain of this life boat and, in the event of an actual emergency, I will personally ensure that you are the very last passenger to board. Is that understood?"

I did not hear what the loud-mouthed lout replied, but I and another passenger flagged the officer down and told him that IF the jerk had the guts to complain to the captain, we were both ready to make statements as to that man's disruptiveness and our support of the officer's action. He thanked us, but said that he didn't think there would be any need to call on witnesses ... and, besides, what he said to the man fully within his authority. :)

Yes, they DO take the Life Boat Drills VERY VERY seriously.

[Host Walt]

My guess is, should there be an emergency during the meal, every waiter would automatically go to his assigned post and you would be out of there in about 90 seconds, same standard as an airplane. Just a guess. Probably the same for the main theater.
That's exactly my point Tom. It shouldn't be a "guess."

If something bad happens, no one will be prepared other than the staff. Which door to use? Where are the life jackets? Etc.

The time to learn that is when things are quiet, not when an emergency condition exists.

[Grumpy1]

My guess is, should there be an emergency during the meal, every waiter would automatically go to his assigned post and you would be out of there in about 90 seconds, same standard as an airplane. Just a guess. Probably the same for the main theater.
It would be good if that were to happen, but after reading about the sinking of the first Prinsendam, I'm not sure I would depend on the wait staff being that concerned about the passengers. Apparently, many of the staff shoved a lot of passengers aside and made sure they got into the lifeboats first.:mad: Oh, yeah, that was just so they could then extend a helping hand to the women and children....Ummm, yeah, that's got to be it:rolleyes:

[Spot]

In an actual crisis, I doubt anyone will go to their intended lifeboat (as they will be in different places throughout the ship and will just follow their crowd). It's ideal to believe otherwise. :)
The drill/muster however is mandatory and therefore your attitude towards it will make the process more tolerable - it's a part of the cruise experience, period.

[Druke I]

Perhaps I am in the minority, but I think the way Princess does it is superior to HAL's method.

In the event of an emergency, your assigned lifeboat may not be available (particularly if the ship is listing "the wrong way"). In the event of collision with another ship (Andrea Doria vs. Stockholm) the lifeboats may have been destroyed, or knocked off their davits, rendering them useless.

By meeting in an interior lounge, the crew can direct you to a lifeboat or life raft that is usable. Additionally, you are more protected from the elements while inside - better to be comfortable while waiting for instructions, etc.

On at least one occasion during HAL's outdoor muster, I have observed an elderly person faint, perhaps from the heat and/or anxiety.

[tomc]

Aren't there lifejackets all along the deck? Not sure how many and not sure if there are supplies elsewhere. I'm sure this has to be in their planning, especially since Prinsendam #1 went down.

Speaking of which, there may have been a mad dash by some of the crew, but every single person did get into a lifeboat, so the rest of the crew must have handled themselves as required.

I'm onboard in 4w, 4d; I can ask around then and see what the waiters say.

[RevNeal]

I will be aboard the Zaandam beginning the end of next week (yippie!) ... I'll ask some questions and see what I can find out, too.

[Vicar]

That's exactly my point Tom. It shouldn't be a "guess."

If something bad happens, no one will be prepared other than the staff. Which door to use? Where are the life jackets? Etc.

The time to learn that is when things are quiet, not when an emergency condition exists.



I have thought about that myself many times on a ship.

Great before sailaway we all know at 4:15 the horn will sound we will get our life jackets out , and walk to life boat station such and such and that is our assigned place to go in an orderly fashion.

GOD FORBID something happens, something bad where the ship hits something or fills up with smoke, or starts lilting to one side. Someone at the pool , or in the casino, or wherever is not going to have the presence of mind to run up several decks to their cabin grab the life jacket and probably not even remember what life boat station they go too.

They are on deck, they see a life boat within sight , they are going to run to it.

[sopa]

[QUOTE=CaptData]I do not care where it is held. I always look for my number and go to it after boarding. When the drill comes I go early (Wheelchair). I also check that the Purser's Desk knows I may need assistance. I usually stay on the floor a half hour after the drill so that Ican get an elevator back to my roo.

Thanks, CaptData, for the wheelchair tips..first about looking for the lifeboat number and station pre-drill, and second about the Purser's Desk. Mom, my sister and I have been on over a dozen cruises together, but last Christmas on the Zaandam was the first time that Mom has used a wheelchair on board. She can walk with a cane, but that isn't easy for her. As impatient as some people (thankfully not many!) can be when their progress is "impeded," it's a little scary to think of what could happen in a real emergency. This Christmas on the Zaandam, we will do what you do.

I, too, don't care where the drills are held as long as they ARE held. Maybe it's silly, but I still pay strict attention to the emergency instructions on a plane, and note the exits in theaters, restaurants, etc:) !

[sail7seas]

If it is impossible/impractical for you to return to your cabin in an emergency to get your life jacket, there are many stored in lockers on deck where we assemble at the lifeboats.

It is better to go to your cabin, if possible, to be sure you have on warm clothes (as instructed) and to not deplete the 'spare supply' of life jackets if it is not necessary for you to use a deck one.

Also....if one takes necessary meds, it may be possible for you to take your
meds with you if you return to your cabin.

[Lisa63]

A difference that was not mentioned directly is that, on the HAL drill, the lifeboats are lowered and the boats are demonstrated so that, not only do you know where to go, you know what you can expect to see and do because it is demonstrated fully. Interesting... this was not done on our HAL cruise last month. Wonder why?

The best drills we ever had were on Premier. Passengers met in designated lounges where we were given instructions on how to put on the vest and learned about what to do in the event of an emergency. Then, we were escorted out to the lifeboat station -- and shown the alternate station along the way -- and were given our "spots" to stand in. Women and children in front, men in back.

[DrivesLikeMario]

I agree with some of the above comments that if a disaster ever happened, things wouldn't go down (pun intended) the way it's supposed to, i.e. - people would grab the first lifeboat they came to and hop on.

As someone said above, "in an ideal world" people would quietly walk to their cabins, retrieve their lifejackets and necessary medications, take the time to put the life jackets on correctly and calmly walk to their appropriate muster station, letting their beloved wives and children board first.

In the real world, that's not going to happen. Every time we do a muster, I imagine everyone running for a lifeboat, people being confused, screaming, crying, running back to the cabin to pack up that last souvenir, and moms trying to get their kids out of the kids' center. I imagine some crew members attempting to follow the rules they've learned, while others would be pushing the passengers out of the way.

Sure, the muster drill is a nice, preventative measure that hopefully some people will remember to follow, but in a real disaster, it's gonna be every man for himself, IMO.

It's like the lady who told me as we were going through the Panama Canal that the reason why we had to wait an hour for our lock to be filled and then opened was because the Panamanians don't want to waste their precious resource - water. (I just about died laughing!) Yeah, right.....it's all about the almighty Dollar. Having a muster drill releases cruise lines from some liability and filling the lock with high paying boats & ships fills someone's pocket.

Okay - let me have it....here it comes..... :) :)

[Vicar]

No flames coming from me Lady Jag.

Even if you have a large percent of passengers following the rules and going to their stations in an orderly fashion, it will all go to hell with just a couple of screaming hysterical people , or people shoving to get to the life boats first.

It just takes one idiot to push and shove, and then someone shoves back and then you have bedlam.

[sail7seas]

I agree with some of the above comments that if a disaster ever happened, things wouldn't go down (pun intended) the way it's supposed to, i.e. - people would grab the first lifeboat they came to and hop on.

As someone said above, "in an ideal world" people would quietly walk to their cabins, retrieve their lifejackets and necessary medications, take the time to put the life jackets on correctly and calmly walk to their appropriate muster station, letting their beloved wives and children board first.

In the real world, that's not going to happen. Every time we do a muster, I imagine everyone running for a lifeboat, people being confused, screaming, crying, running back to the cabin to pack up that last souvenir, and moms trying to get their kids out of the kids' center. I imagine some crew members attempting to follow the rules they've learned, while others would be pushing the passengers out of the way.

Sure, the muster drill is a nice, preventative measure that hopefully some people will remember to follow, but in a real disaster, it's gonna be every man for himself, IMO.

It's like the lady who told me as we were going through the Panama Canal that the reason why we had to wait an hour for our lock to be filled and then opened was because the Panamanians don't want to waste their precious resource - water. (I just about died laughing!) Yeah, right.....it's all about the almighty Dollar. Having a muster drill releases cruise lines from some liability and filling the lock with high paying boats & ships fills someone's pocket.

Okay - let me have it....here it comes..... :) :)

Talk about cynics!!! :rolleyes:

[DrivesLikeMario]

Coming from someone like you who deals with disasters and sees people under extreme conditions, I appreciate that.

Yeah, Sail, you'd think I was a lawyer or something. Just a realist....mon dieu! Maybe my French side coming out. :)

[Aussie Gal]

Lady Jag,

I have found the muster drills on HAL so much more efficient than on Princess. I didn't like the way we just sat around in chairs in the lounge and listened to a speaker. On HAL they take the roll call out on deck and do it very seriously. I like to think that would be the way they would handle any emergency. We also know exactly which area of the boat we need to go to.

I pray and hope it will never happen to any of us, but if something did occur at least we know where our stations are and I would have faith in the crew.

Jennie.

[sail7seas]

Still sounds pretty cynical IMO :)

Perhaps once you have experienced an HAL lifeboat drill, you will have a basis for comparison to RCI and Princess.

We have cruised with those companies and found their drill very inferior to HAL's.

[Esme]

[QUOTE=Lisa63]Interesting... this was not done on our HAL cruise last month. Wonder why?
QUOTE]

Last few cruises we have been on they did not lower the life boats like they used to. Have no idea why this was not done.

[boards]

I agree with S7S, we have sailed on the Carnival and the NCL and so far once with HAL and I can say for sure the HAL's (the Zaandam) was the best drill that we have been through. They take it very serious and make it so you do to. The drills on the Carnival were a joke, several cruises we never left the place where muster was held. I reported my wife's jacket had missing straps and nothing was done about it. I am happy to say we never had to make the drills into a reality, but I am sure most of us were ready and we were properly prepared to it if anything had happened. The crew did a great job.

[boards]

I agree with S7S, we have sailed on the Carnival and the NCL and so far once with HAL and I can say for sure the HAL's (the Zaandam) was the best drill that we have been through. They take it very serious and make it so you do to. The drills on the Carnival were a joke, several cruises we never left the place where muster was held. I reported my wife's jacket had missing straps and nothing was done about it. I am happy to say we never had to make the drills into a reality, but I am sure most of us were ready and we were properly prepared to it if anything had happened. The crew did a great job.
I should say something about the NCL, they did a pretty good of presenting the drills, but it did not compare to what the presentation HAL did.

[Mary Ellen]

DH and I must have started sailing just after RuthC did, as we were on the Prinsendam cruise immediately before the one that sank.

We were VERY late arriving in Vancouver (noon-ish) as we had encountered a horrid storm (40+ seas in a 9,000 GRT ship) which necessitated our taking the more protected (but much slower) Inside Passage route back from Sitka - and we'd stopped in Juneau to hospitalize a passenger who had sustained VERY serious injuries during the storm.

Anyway, many of the passengers on that next cruise were waiting as we disembarked. Since this was a repositioning cruise to Indonesia, it was about 30 days and the passengers were definately elderly. I'd quess that the age was 80+. When we learned that ALL of those people got safely (only minor injuries) off the ship, in pretty heavy seas, we were quite impressed - as they didn't seem to be the fittest from what we'd seen.

We're thankful HAL does the Lifeboat Drill as they do - AND we pay attention each time.

BTW - the drill is a USCG regulation, enacted after the Titanic if memory serves. No way around it. It isn't to relieve HAL of liability.

[tomc]

True story, and verifiable (tell you where later on).

Old lady on, I think, a Love Boat leaving the west coast a few years ago. They're having lifeboat drill. Old lady says to her companion, "We didn't do this on the Titanic." Persons around her ask, "WHAT did you say??" Old lady responds, "I don't remember us doing this on the Titanic."

I forget exactly who it was -- Nellie Becker, I think; the 12-y/o who was traveling from India to England to the USA with her mother. The father had gone on ahead. It was in an issue of the Titanic Historical Society's quarterly a few years back.

[arzz]

Maybe it is because I teach chemistry and am trained to always anticipate the possible negatives but a good life boat drill makes me feel more confident about the cruise and its professionalism. Seeing the lifeboats lowered mean the crew does this often and knows what to do. It also means that the life boats are in good repair and can be safely lowered and raised. It also means more prepared passengers should a negative event occur. We all know that our boat station in reality might not be available but that does not justify a less than complete and informational drill (like the one I had on Princess last summer).

I still remember the cruise we took about 10 years ago that had a rather cursory life boat drill -- we had been on the cruise line before and had always been impressed by the most informative and complete drills that I have ever experienced, but not on this particular ship before. The ship was new to the line. So....the next day we headed up to the top decks to look in and "inspect" the life boats. What we saw was horrifying -- they were not at all ready for sea -- each boat was piled with newly arrived safety equipment that had not been sorted, organized or stowed. Even more disconcerting was the fact that the majority of the boats had no motors -- they were wooden and equipped only with oars and sails! Honest!

It is better to stand outside in the hot sun wrapped like a hot dog in a bun for 20 minutes. Trust me!

[dakrewser]

it's all about the almighty Dollar. Having a muster drill releases cruise lines from some liability and filling the lock with high paying boats & ships fills someone's pocket.
Well, if you're going to get the FACTS wrong, then you have to expect to be corrected. Muster drills are required by law, it's got nothing to do with liability (which "liability" would that be?). And you wait for the lock to fill, because that's why there's a lock! It's there so that the water level can be equalized. No one "pays" per hour.....

[kryos]

Still sounds pretty cynical IMO :)

Perhaps once you have experienced an HAL lifeboat drill, you will have a basis for comparison to RCI and Princess.

We have cruised with those companies and found their drill very inferior to HAL's.
It was interesting ... because I mentioned on here before that when I met up with the Rotterdam in Puerto Limon last March, no one even mentioned the muster drill I missed and, being my first cruise, I didn't know to ask about it.

Well, on my recent Zuiderdam cruise I noticed the green emergency lights lit on the morning of the second day, and a group of about six people getting on the elevator with their life jackets on.

Guess they were the "no shows" from muster drill the day before. :)

Guess HAL does take it seriously ... and my experience on the Rotterdam was probably just an isolated oversight.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[Himself]

Some good points are being made on this thread. I do think the dining room situation needs to be addressed and since I have heard HAL reads these threads, I am sure the observations will be taken under advisement. Regarding the drill itself, EVERYONE needs to know where to go in a real emergency. I think these drills have been around since the Titanic. They are mandatory and they are good.
Himself

[cruzincurt]

We were on the Norway last year when the boiler blew up. Luckly, we had just docked at Miami. Even so, we were called to muster stations at 7:00 that morning. And guess what, the power was off, no lights, no AC.

They had trouble getting the access windows open on the promanade deck so it would have taken some time to get into the boats if we had to. The promande deck where you get on the boats is enclosed on the Norway.

As we stood in the dark and heat, some morons went back to the Lido to get their breakfast and bring it back to the muster stations. And I will call them morons because that's what they were and acted like. From Webster 'moron- n, any stupid person or a person lacking in good judgement'

I will assume that I'm on a ship with a large number of morons who don't pay attention, hate to go to muster, complain about standing outside for 15 minutes. Yet, these same morons will lay out in the sun at the pool for hours. Their lack of concern puts my life at risk.

I would rather stand on the promonade deck, near my life boat than sit in the theatre expecting some room steward drafted into emergency status to guide me to the lifeboat. I want to know where the boat is now.

Oh, you poor baby, had to stand outside for a while. Hope you never get called to muster stations for real.

[the2ofus]

Just thought I'd mention that HAL also does actual lifeboat drills for the crew while in port. During these drills all the lifeboats are lowered and sailed away from the ship, then returned and raised back into place. We saw this in Sitka about 6 years ago and also during one of our Caribbean cruises. The officers were on deck watching and appeared to be reviewing the results with the various lifeboat crews at the end of the exercise. The whole thing is done in a very professional and serious manner.

[roohound]

I've done two HAL cruises and never saw the lifeboats lowered..I did see at least 4 people faint from the heat and that was just in my immediate area.

I'm with Druke I..I much prefer how Princess handles their drills

[cruzincurt]

My last cruise was on Princess and I did not like having my muster station in the theatre. The theatre was full, no way will there be an organized, orderly exit from the theatre. I don't want to have to depend on one of the show dancers guiding me to the life boats when the ship is on fire, the lights are off and/or the ship is listing 15 degrees.

Let me practice standing outside next to the life boat.

[RaffinOrganGrinders]

Yes, they DO take the Life Boat Drills VERY VERY seriously.
RevNeal, I am a 2X type guy :o and have found the life jackets to 'just' fit in a cinch. Have you ever seen larger size vest for us big guys?


:D P.S. as we speak Titanic is on NBC right now (Sun. even).

George

[Grumpy1]

There was a news article last week about one of the cruise ships that was bringing the lifeboats back up when improperly attached lifting cables came loose and one lifeboat dropped 30 ft to the water. No passengers in the boat, 4 crew members were thrown into the water with some injuries. Sure hope they get there act together before I need to use that boat.

I don't remember which line it was, could probably find it with a little searching.

[Dutchman]

I personally like the manner in which HAL conducts their muster drills! On our last trip this past spring, one gentleman showed up for the drill with his life jacket improperly tied. The officer in charge politely instructed him on the proper way to cross the straps and also to tie the knot properly. He explaind to all of us why this was neccessary and asked if anyone else need help in re-tieing thei vests! Now thats paying attention to details...!!! Hooray for the Dutch officers.

[cruzincurt]

I agree that HAL had the most "practical" muster of all the cruise lines I've been on.

As one who has stood at muster (on the Norway) while a fire burned below, let me say it gets real, very quick. Some people passed out from the stress and had to be carried off the ship. I don't want to even think what it would have been like if we were out at sea, or in the middle of the night. Picture yourself standing there with your life vest on while over the PA system they are calling fire teams to different locations.

We we very lucky to be at the dock, in the US. The Miami/Dade fire rescue sent no less than 15 fire trucks.

I want to exactly know where my life boat is, and if I'm on a cruise where we muster in the lounge, I'll go hunt out the boats myself, later. Most ships will lower a couple of lifeboats for crew practice when the ship is docked at one of the ports.

HAL- keep up the good work.

My question is, why would anyone stick that whistle in their mouth while standing at muster?

[Sailure]

On one of my cruises on the Costa Romantica I had a suite 1002 right next to the radio room and the bridge. At the time suite pax could open the door and go right into the radio room. (pre 911). We would see the captain and the officers all the time and got into a discussion about having to go to the lifeboats since our muster station was on another deck. The captain told us that if we were in our room and had to go to the boats to just come through the radio room door and jump into HIS boat! I don't know if he was kidding or not, but it was a moot point anyway on this trip! ;)

[bepsf]

I feel HAL does do an excellent job not only with educating passengers as to where to go & what to do in emergencies - but also drilling crew throughout the week. Talking w/ a staff person last week aboard Amsterdam, she told me that invariably, a handful of passengers will show up on deck in their life preservers during the crew drills because they missed hearing the pre-drill announcement!!!

I'm sure that if a lifeboat became inoperative for whatever reason, it would be easier for staff to guide those (relatively) few folks across the ship to a different lifeboat station than to expect those passengers to hear precise announcements in a lounge above 2500+ nervous voices.

And as far as staff on the Prinsendam reportedly rushing the boats - crew are trained to be at their stations as quickly as possible to help passengers and ready the boats for lowering - they don't do passengers any good by gleefully holding doors open and patiently waiting for the last elderly gent to trundle to his station if the davits aren't lowered & the boats made ready.

Incidentally, the vast majority of crewmembers are to disembark on their own collapsable boats & liferafts...

Also, if you notice when you tender to shore, there are enough lifevests in the boats stashed under the seats and in the overhead for all, so if you cannot make it up 5 decks to your suite and down 5 decks to the boats - you'll probably still be allright (unless you've managed to really p***-off the officer of the boat...)

And the kids will be alright too - their wristbands issued upon boarding have their name, cabin number and lifeboat number so that in case of emergency, a crewmember can scoop them up and bring them to the appropriate boat.