Costa Allegra in trouble in Indian Ocean

Another Costa in trouble .

http://www.theage.com.au/travel/travel-incidents/costa-cruise-liner-adrift-after-engine-room-fire-20120228-1tzjq.html

Floating around without power in the area of the Seychelles - the area where P&O UK last week cancelled their upcoming March port visit to Port Victoria due to pirate activity!! :p

Barry

Floating around without power in the area of the Seychelles - the area where P&O UK last week cancelled their upcoming March port visit to Port Victoria due to pirate activity!! :p

 

Barry

That was my immediate thought too:eek:. At least they are on 'watch'.

Floating around without power in the area of the Seychelles - the area where P&O UK last week cancelled their upcoming March port visit to Port Victoria due to pirate activity!! :p

 

Barry

One report stated that there are nine members of the Italian Anti Pirate force on board to protect the ship and repel pirates. Doesn't sound very pleasant - no lighting or cooked food!

Colleen

Yes Pirate alley out there. Our Arcadia itinerary now misses Port Victoria - Seychelles, because of recent pirate activity.

Lets trust that help gets to them before the pirates.:eek:

At one stage wasn't Costa Allegra mooted as a replacement for Pacific Sun?

I hope so too 9 staff members are not able to fight off pirates with high speed boats and missile launchers..:eek:

For one of the very few times I am glad I am not at sea.

Sue

Lets trust that help gets to them before the pirates.:eek:

 

At one stage wasn't Costa Allegra mooted as a replacement for Pacific Sun?

 

Honestly, how much bad publicity can Costa take?

 

Honestly, how much bad publicity can Costa take?

I doubt it could take any more. As I am guessing after this they will have to really reinvent their image. The company has even become a sort of a joke. With even a local radio station here making fun of the company (not about the loss of life on Concordia) and how bad things are.

Hi All

We were in a similar situation on board the Costa Classica in Dec 2009, we were adrift in the sth china sea for 3 hours with no power. We had sailed on fri 4th midnight,we broke down 11.15am sunday 6th and had not done muster drill. we were charged 8 euro for bottled water (no other refreshments were available due to no power) at about 2pm the emergency sirens were activated and everyone (including crew) were clueless.We were trapped with a wheelchair pax in middle of ship. after approx 10 mins an anouncement came over that it was a false alarm and everything was Ok. We emailed a letter to Costa after the cruise and there reply was astonishing, they claimed we had done safety drill and the breakdown was part of the emergency drill .( I still have email correspondence). We were left stranded at sea, no maritime authorities were notified. This latest incident is just another case of mismanagement and lack of maintenance on there older ships, The disabled room on the Classica was unlivable.Ironically we were docked next to Allegra in Singapore , and many of us wished we could swap ships.The 14 of us on this cruise will never sail with, or trust, or believe anything this worthless poor excuse for a cruise company says.

Regards

JaJa

Allegra and Marina are old Container boats converted to cruise boats, thats why all the portholes, no promenade decks, and no balcony cabins .

Costa really should be retiring these older vessels which are way beyond their use-by dates .

Allegra and Marina are old Container boats converted to cruise boats, thats why all the portholes, no promenade decks, and no balcony cabins .

 

Costa really should be retiring these older vessels which are way beyond their use-by dates .

Costa Allegra, built in 1969 and had many name changes and face lifts. Not for me, who knows Carnival Corp might pass it on from Costa to P&O Australia to replace Pacific Sun, 'Pacific Allegra', stranger things have happened. We all know we get the 'hand me down' ships here. But then again we could kick off P&O New Zealand by giving them Allegra as the Kiwi flagship. LOL.

My money would be on the properly trained, para military personnel onboard as opposed to untrained, disorganised "pirates" who mostly take on unprotected, unguarded container or other cargo ships.

A group of nine or so pirate guards would be more than a match for half a dozen rabble pirates. Shipping companies are at last getting their acts together with anti piracy strategies and I would not expect the Companies to trumpet to everyone just what they are doing. I think most people would be surprised at just what measures companies like Princess, HAL, P & O and Cunard take in this regard.

Just consider the legal implications these companies would be exposing themselves to if no precautions were taken to a known threat let alone the future marketing threat in the event of an incident. (Look at Costa, different incident but very preventable)

It all boils down to "duty of Care" and what is done about it.

John

Costa Allegra, built in 1969 and had many name changes and face lifts. Not for me, who knows Carnival Corp might pass it on from Costa to P&O Australia to replace Pacific Sun, 'Pacific Allegra', stranger things have happened. We all know we get the 'hand me down' ships here. But then again we could kick off P&O New Zealand by giving them Allegra as the Kiwi flagship. LOL.

Different horses for different courses! :D

Have a friend who did a cruise on Costa Allegra out of Hong Kong - she thoroughly enjoyed it!! :D

Barry

If as reported , she has lost power and is floating around many miles from the nearest port, it will not be very nice on board.

No air con, no galley, no toilets, no lighting etc,etc.

Tuesday, February 28th 2012

Time 7.00 pm (CET)

Today afternoon, around 12.30 pm CET (3:30 pm local time) the two tugs reached the Costa Allegra to assist the ship as well as the second Ocean fishing vessel. Costa Allegra continues to be towed by ocean fishing ship flying French flag “Trévignon” and maintains a speed of about 6 knots. At current speed and with stable weather conditions Costa Allegra may also anticipate its arrival in Mahé on March 1 early morning.

Tomorrow, the arrival of an helicopter will be the expected to deliver flashlights (about 400) and fresh bread, since on board it is not possible to cook it, while there is no lack of food and other comfort items.

Also thanks to the arrival of a small generator, carried by a Navy ship present on site as support, the ship crew is doing everything possible to make the situation on board more comfortable trying to restore basics services on board. The speed of the ship, despite the hot and humid climate, creates a slight breeze that helps making the situation more comfortable.

Meanwhile, today early afternoon, Costa Cruises‘s "Care Team" has arrived in Mahé: a group of 14 people made up of executives and qualified managers as well as specialized technicians with the task of providing the necessary assistance both to the ship and to passengers as well as to crew members on their arrival in Mahé.

“Care Team” members immediately met with local authorities and those responsible for the rescue coordination in order to define the operational details of passengers’ arrival on the island and to guarantee the necessary accommodation in local hotels and an efficient organization for their return back to their final destination.

Eight of them will board Costa Allegra tomorrow morning thanks to a local Navy ship to meet Guests and discuss with them all the necessary arrangements and to assist the ship’s staff in deeper technical inspections. Together with Costa “Care Team”, there will be two officers from Seychelles Immigration to smooth checks and procedures.

etc.

http://www.costacruises.co.uk/B2C/GB/Info/allegra_statement.htm

This is the latest update from Costa website.

As David said, it would be very unpleasant indeed.

Just been reading some idiotic remarks on Costa section of this site, mostly by Americans, without being offensive to Americans. Most would probably have never cruised with Costa. Two accidents will not finish the line.

Different horses for different courses! :D

 

Have a friend who did a cruise on Costa Allegra out of Hong Kong - she thoroughly enjoyed it!! :D

 

 

Barry

Exactly Barry, not being critical of Costa here, they just were unfortunate to have two accidents together. I am sure many have enjoyed their Costa cruises and will continue to do so.

I had a bad experience with Costa couple of years ago, over a rescheduling/redeployment of Costa Atlantica I was booked on in New England. Costa were pathetic, I got my cruise fare back after 3 months, but no comp for airfares/ hotels etc. Travel Insurance not interested. Done it to death on another thread. End of story.

I hope so too 9 staff members are not able to fight off pirates with high speed boats and missile launchers..:eek:

 

For one of the very few times I am glad I am not at sea.

 

Sue

Not just 9 staff members, they would be Italian Defence Force Special operatives or Italian Carabineri (Para Military Police.) I am sure they would do a very good job of repelling pirates. They would be armed with more than sticks and stones, wink.

Costa Allegra, built in 1969 and had many name changes and face lifts. Not for me, who knows Carnival Corp might pass it on from Costa to P&O Australia to replace Pacific Sun, 'Pacific Allegra', stranger things have happened. We all know we get the 'hand me down' ships here. But then again we could kick off P&O New Zealand by giving them Allegra as the Kiwi flagship. LOL.

Wednesday, February 29th 2012

Time 5.30 pm (CET)

Costa Cruises informs that the member of Costa “Care Team” reached Costa Allegra and met Guests on board to assess their state of health and serenity as well as to collect their needs for disembarkation.

From Guests’s requests on board it comes out that, up to now, 376 Guests out of 627 agreed on the Costa Cruises's proposal to continue their vacation in Seychelles; these Guests will be accommodated by Costa Cruises, at its expenses, in high quality hotel structures in the following islands: Praslin, La Digue, Silhouette and Cerfs.

Costa Cruises will arrange also homeward flights at the end of the vacation.

The remaining 251 Guests decided to return their homes with flights organised by Costa Cruises departing from Mahé on Thursday evening, March 1.

Crippled cruise ship Costa Allegra docks in Seychelles

Dozens of officials flocked to the port to help passengers, some of whom applauded as the vessel neared shore.

Passengers on the crippled Italian liner said they thought they would have to get into lifeboats and abandon ship in pirate-infested waters when it was disabled by fire.

"When it all happened we were ready to get into the lifeboats. We thought the worst had happened," said Chris, one of more than 600 passengers who stepped gratefully ashore after a three-day ordeal.

"I couldn't believe it, after what happened to the other cruise ship. I could just picture having to jump for it into the water - my wife was terrified."

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/crippled-cruise-ship-costa-allegra-docks-in-seychelles/story-e6frg6so-1226286599104

Thankfully, it seems Costa learnt something from the Concordia. There does not seem to be any delay in the Allegra incident in declaring an emergency and having passengers go to muster points and lifeboats. No reported deaths or injuries. Quite a bit of inconvenience for three days but all in all, a happy ending with lifelong bragging subjects for all on board.

John

Thursday, March 1st 2012

Time 6.00 pm (CET)

Costa Crociere announces that Costa Allegra, after mooring at the docks in Port Victoria, Mahé, at 12 o’clock midday today (local time), has successfully completed in about 2 hours disembarkation of Guests and crew. Guests and crew are in good health and no critical situations have been found. On leaving the ship Guests were attended to by the ship’s crew, by the members of the Costa Crociere “Care Team” on the island and by the assistance personnel provided by local authorities.

The number of Guests who have decided to accept Costa Crociere’s offer to continue their holidays in the Seychelles has risen to about 70%, out of a total of 627. These Guests have already been taken to the hotels where there will spend 1 or 2 weeks holiday at the company’s expense on the islands of Praslin, La Digue, Silhouette and Cerfs. Costa Crociere will also organise their return flights home after the holiday.

The remaining 30% of Guests who have decided to return home have been accommodated in hotels on the island. They will leave in the evening on flights organised by Costa Crociere from Seychelles International airport to Paris, to Milan via Rome, and to Zurich via Vienna. The flights are scheduled to arrive on the morning of March 2nd.

The Company, sincerely sorry for the discomfort caused to Guests but happy to have found them in good health, has offered them a compensation package including:

● a full refund of the fare paid fo the cruise and associated travel expenses;

● a full refund of on board expenses incurred during the cruise;

● indemnity equivalent to the amount of the fare paid for the cruise and associated travel costs;

● for Guests who have decided not to continue their holday in the Seychelles at the Company’s expense, a voucher for the same value as the unfinished Costa Allegra cruise, for travel free of charge on any Costa ship departing in the coming 24 months.

Costa Crociere would like to express its gratitude to the master of Costa Allegra Nicolò Alba and all members of the crew, to the Guests of Costa Allegra, to the master and crew of the French deep sea fishing boat Trevignon, to the other naval and air units involved in the rescue operations of the Costa Allegra, to the Italian Harbour Office General Command, to the local authorities of the Seychelles and Reunion, to the Italian Consulate and Embassy, and to international diplomatic representatives.

From Costa website

Yes, johndon, they have certainly learnt from their response to Concordia. Seems an excellent compensation package, especially for the 70% who are taking a holiday in the Seychelles, at company expense.

Well handled by Costa, no doubt encouraged by head office 'Carnival Corp.'