On the occurence on the Legend... in John's words...

[mixjock]

I agree that storms can turn on and off very quickly. I'm not a professional weather anything but I do go boating on the Chesapeake Bay pretty regularly and I have seen storms coming directly at me from a mile or two away only to dissipate before it gets to me. Although I don't think ever seem a storm just appear overhead without any kind of warning whatsoever... not to say it is impossible, they do have to start somewhere.

 

Hopefully there will be an investigation into the cause of this accident and it will be made public quickly. I'm very curious now as to the true cause of this accident. :)

 

storms do pop up quickly especially in humid conditions found in the tropics and in the midwest in the summer. i am a former weather spotter for wlwt cincinnati, 4 years working for the primary emergency alert system station for western ky, and now am a weather caster for the radio forecast network so I do know a few things about storms in general, though don't have details one way or another on this particular storm. but it is possible for a storm to form like that with little to no warning. also the pictures in john's photos are more evident of a wall cloud and not a squal line as somoene else had suggested. Unless you have sat or radar it is near impossible to detect a squal line from a photo.

[Chacooe]

It seems the ship was actually being blown sideways and a bit backward.

 

The storm was off the starboard side. The Peurta Maya pier is probably 1/4 mile from the International where RCI docks.

 

The Legend's bow is pointed out to sea and away from the dock and the RCI ship with no room to maneuver, no ability to turn.

 

These ships are a few hundred feet tall and, in the case of the Legend, 960 feet long, little more than a massive sail. With the wind blowing nearly directly from starboard at 50 knots the thrusters couldn't possibly keep the ship from drifting to port.

 

It could have all been very much worse.

 

 

 

Could you imagine what the damage would have been without the thrusters at least slowing the ship a little. I feel that with the use of those thrusters, they did help prevent so much more damage.

[Chacooe]

Yeah well I wasn't on the Titanic either but I can still say the Captain screwed up there too.

 

Now you are wrong there to, it was not the Captain that told the engine room to reverse all engines or to turn the ship, that was done by First Officer Murdock who was on night duty whne that night, so it was not the Captain that gave the orders.

[Kurbanfan]

According to Cruisnks who was posting live from the ship.......said the storm did not just pop up....it was already there.........