Star Princess investigation

[RickEk]

Just saw the survivor interviewed on CNN.

 

He said the ship that ignored him was big and white and had the ship's name in red.

 

Kudos to the first person who can post a picture of the Star Princess showing the name in red and in a size large enough to be read by someone two miles away without binoculars.

 

Interesting... here's the link to that story:

 

http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/14/world/americas/cruise-lawsuit/index.html?iref=allsearch

[Mom33]

Just saw the survivor interviewed on CNN.

 

He said the ship that ignored him was big and white and had the ship's name in red.

 

Kudos to the first person who can post a picture of the Star Princess showing the name in red and in a size large enough to be read by someone two miles away without binoculars.

 

You got that right.:) The more the birders and victim talk, the better case for Princess.

They have not been able to prove that the boat in the picture the birders took is the same boat that Vasquez was in nor that the Star was the ship that Vasquez saw. The boat Vasquez was in is very common in Central America. There are no registration numbers visible and there are no special markings or name on the boat.

They can't prove the two boats were in proximity to each other without investigating the currents and winds in the 2 weeks the fishermen were drifting and knowing where the boat was located when the engine stopped.

 

Filing suit before the investigations are done, is premature at best and something that would be done by an ambulance chaser.

[whitecap]

You got that right.:) The more the birders and victim talk, the better case for Princess.

They have not been able to prove that the boat in the picture the birders took is the same boat that Vasquez was in nor that the Star was the ship that Vasquez saw. The boat Vasquez was in is very common in Central America. There are no registration numbers visible and there are no special markings or name on the boat.

They can't prove the two boats were in proximity to each other without investigating the currents and winds in the 2 weeks the fishermen were drifting and knowing where the boat was located when the engine stopped.

 

Filing suit before the investigations are done, is premature at best and something that would be done by an ambulance chaser.

 

There is one good reason why someone would be so very quick to file a lawsuit against a major corporation, it's called QUICK SETTLEMENT! Make the corporation want the problem to just go away.

[wowsmom]

Just saw the survivor interviewed on CNN.

 

He said the ship that ignored him was big and white and had the ship's name in red.

 

Kudos to the first person who can post a picture of the Star Princess showing the name in red and in a size large enough to be read by someone two miles away without binoculars.

 

I saw that on my local news last night as well. I wonder what cruiselines DO have the name in red?

[MandE-UK]

I am really fed up of reading this thread now. We were on the South American cruise and met the 'birders'. We even had a look through their telescope. Personally I do not think they would make very good or reliable witnesses. Secondly at around the time they say they saw the boat 'in distress' and certainly on the same day there were numerous fishing boats in the vicinity. I will also vouch that one or two of them actually waved at the Star as it cruised serenly past them. For a small fishing boat to see a huge white ship float past must be quite a thing.

Thirdly I would trust the Captain of that ship implicitly. If he had known a boat was in danger or even suspected it may be, he would NOT have ignored it.

[robgvic]

Bravo, MandE-UK

[vkuehne]

For a small fishing boat to see a huge white ship float past must be quite a thing.

 

For sure, especially if you're about to die of thirst and that huge white ship is not just a tourist attraction like for most of us but your only hope for survival.

[Bowie MeMe]

I was on the Star just a few cruises before the one in question. The Captain and his staff were very professional and personable. There would be NO reason to not offer help if help was needed by anyone. The law and ethical standards both say that you stop and render aid. No one would want the misery of wondering if you could have helped. The Company does not need or want this kind of publicity.

 

Having spent many a wonderful hour hanging on the rail of cruise ships and often with fairly good binoculars in hand, I do not see how they saw much of anything. First off you are at least 7 stories (decks) above the water, at some kind of an angle (can not see 360 degrees) and you are moving which means if the birders did as they said and brought the Captain's Circle host out on deck to see through their scope you would be well out of range of the tiny boat speck. Photos you need to be fairly close to tell color/shape of boat from the deck of a cruise ship. Watching the pilot boats etc from the deck can only see for a very few minutes and those boats are larger than the boat called 50 cent. Again watching from many decks as we and other cruise ships all leave at about the same time and make our way out of port, it is not very long at all before the cruise ship (and they are really large!) becomes just another large white ship -- hard to tell if it was that ship or the other one we saw. The survivor says he saw the name in red and he knew it was the Star Princess -- well does the survivor read English because otherwise how did he know the name? The name on the ship is not that big that it can be seen (and read) by somebody so very far away. IMHO this is not a possibility that the ship went by and that the surviving sailor saw, identified, read the name, and remembered the one 5 minute period of a 16 day nightmare when the Star could or could not have been in the area of that small boat. Tragic but I doubt if the problems of the 50 cent were in any way impacted by Star Princess. The cruise line is just trying to be sensitive to the tragedy because the back lash and bad publicity would hurt but this is another case of "they got money and maybe they will give me some"!

[wineforhealth]

Just saw the survivor interviewed on CNN.

 

He said the ship that ignored him was big and white and had the ship's name in red.

 

just wondering are the letters in red or Blue?

[wowsmom]

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=star+princess&hl=en&biw=1333&bih=670&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=QaojcOOuVtLWpM:&imgrefurl=http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Star_Princess_in_Oslo_2006-06-13.jpg&docid=lNKNngC70u7KGM&imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Star_Princess_in_Oslo_2006-06-13.jpg&w=3072&h=2304&ei=IAizT5jMOOWuiQLYqMniAw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=631&sig=109929884079466044995&page=1&tbnh=136&tbnw=173&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:11,s:0,i:162&tx=75&ty=94

 

This picture shows that Star Princess is written in blue.

 

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=star+princess&hl=en&biw=1333&bih=670&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=5CWJKgSHDHlk8M:&imgrefurl=http://uglyships.wordpress.com/2009/04/16/star-princess/&docid=JIKMl-L-GeRSDM&imgurl=http://uglyships.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/star_princess.jpg&w=640&h=480&ei=IAizT5jMOOWuiQLYqMniAw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=473&sig=109929884079466044995&page=1&tbnh=136&tbnw=172&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0,i:145&tx=86&ty=78

 

Also in blue on the back of the ship.

[RickEk]

just wondering are the letters in red or Blue?

 

On Princess ships, the lettering on the bow is a shade of blue/green...

SapphirePrincess_43 by RickEk, on Flickr

 

The lettering on the sign on the upper decks is blue/black:

Sapphire Princess - Puerto Vallarta 102 by RickEk, on Flickr

 

The only cruise ships that I know of that use red on their hulls is Carnival. But even there, the lettering is still blue.

Carnival Dream by RickEk, on Flickr

[Shogun]

Hi All

 

I was not there, I do not know what did or did not happen,

 

however a number of people have reported other fishing boats in the area

 

why did they not see one of there own was in trouble, or offer assistance

 

or report to coast guard a boat in trouble.

 

yours Shogun

[billco]

It seems to me this tragedy might have been avoided if the Panamanian authorities had been a bit more diligent in search and rescue effort after the fishing boat was reported missing.

[Mom33]

It seems to me this tragedy might have been avoided if the Panamanian authorities had been a bit more diligent in search and rescue effort after the fishing boat was reported missing.

 

I agree !

[PescadoAmarillo]

Princess has admitted there was a communication breakdown on their ship, about a most important matter. Doesn't that concern you? Because if it truly doesn't worry you, I guess that tells me all I need to know about your blind trust in Princess, and the strong possibility that you will dispute any findings citing Princess at fault anyways.

 

It has nothing to do with liking Princess, or not liking Princess. We love Princess, and have many more Princess cruises in our future. But maybe that's why I am intensely curious about what happened. I want to be certain that if you fall overboard, and I report it so the nearest deck hand (as we're told to do), that all attempts will be made to rescue you.

 

I hope Princess is found innocent of any wrongdoing with regards to the 50 Cents. I still ache for what the fishermen went through and the angst the birders have experienced thinking that they were in any way associated with this tragedy. I feel pretty confident that Captain Perrin did nothing wrong.

 

But I still want to know what happened on the Star Princess.

[whitecap]

Princess has admitted there was a communication breakdown on their ship, about a most important matter. Doesn't that concern you? Because if it truly doesn't worry you, I guess that tells me all I need to know about your blind trust in Princess, and the strong possibility that you will dispute any findings citing Princess at fault anyways.

 

It has nothing to do with liking Princess, or not liking Princess. We love Princess, and have many more Princess cruises in our future. But maybe that's why I am intensely curious about what happened. I want to be certain that if you fall overboard, and I report it so the nearest deck hand (as we're told to do), that all attempts will be made to rescue you.

 

I hope Princess is found innocent of any wrongdoing with regards to the 50 Cents. I still ache for what the fishermen went through and the angst the birders have experienced thinking that they were in any way associated with this tragedy. I feel pretty confident that Captain Perrin did nothing wrong.

 

But I still want to know what happened on the Star Princess.

 

I'm not sure who you are addressing but I will respond; Yes, a lack of communication of any type or during any situation is a concern and I feel sure that Princess has addressed that situation, my point is that no one has connected the missed communication to the stranded fishing boat. Many have ASSUMED allegations as FACTS. That isn't how the system is designed to work!

[Mom33]

Princess has admitted there was a communication breakdown on their ship, about a most important matter. Doesn't that concern you? Because if it truly doesn't worry you, I guess that tells me all I need to know about your blind trust in Princess, and the strong possibility that you will dispute any findings citing Princess at fault anyways.

 

It has nothing to do with liking Princess, or not liking Princess. We love Princess, and have many more Princess cruises in our future. But maybe that's why I am intensely curious about what happened. I want to be certain that if you fall overboard, and I report it so the nearest deck hand (as we're told to do), that all attempts will be made to rescue you.

 

I hope Princess is found innocent of any wrongdoing with regards to the 50 Cents. I still ache for what the fishermen went through and the angst the birders have experienced thinking that they were in any way associated with this tragedy. I feel pretty confident that Captain Perrin did nothing wrong.

 

But I still want to know what happened on the Star Princess.

 

 

Of course it concerns me. But lynching the cruiseline and Captain without all the facts concerns me just as much.

There was a communication problem between the birders and the crew, but escalating it to manslaughter accusations against the crew in the news media and on blogger sites, has created a firestorm against the crew and Princess before ALL the facts are in.

 

Princess will address the miscommunication so that it doesn't happen again, but the rest of the story is still yet to be proven.

 

Do I have an opinion? Yes! The most preposterous part of this fiasco is to say that the Captain left those men to die. I do not believe he new or saw the 50 cents.

[curiouscat]

I too surmise that there was a communication breakdown and the bridge and ultimately the captain didn't receive the info.... So in that vain I trust that the Captain didn't know or her would have stopped but at the same time would like to know how/why the communication broke down.... and whomever was told the original info.... those heads should roll !

[PescadoAmarillo]

I'm not sure who you are addressing but I will respond; Yes, a lack of communication of any type or during any situation is a concern and I feel sure that Princess has addressed that situation.

How can you be sure? Honestly, in this entire matter no one can be certain of anything but that there were three distinct events: 1.) 50 Cents adrift; 2.) the birders' sighting "something"; and 3.) that the Princess communication system failed. Oh, and that there is enough concern on the part of two governmental authorities about the possible connection between the three that they've launched investigations.

 

That's really all I'm "sure" of.

[vkuehne]

I'm also really interested to see if Princess already took measures to make sure something like that doesnt happen again in their fleet. We booked a Princess cruise a few days ago leaving next Thursday, and I'll make sure to ask any officers and some other crew I meet if there have been changes aboard (the Crown in this case). And I had a pretty bad gut feeling actually giving them business (but the route+deal were too good, and my gf really wanted to do this Greece-tour), because I really wanna see how they handle this case as a company, and so far I'm less than impressed. Their sentence in their new press release 5 days ago (http://www.princess.com/news/article.jsp?newsArticleId=na1237) "Our investigation has not yet concluded" really shocked me. One month??? It's either a lie or incompetence.

 

I think a balanced approach is good - we are their customers and we also should hold this company accountable when they mess up...be it with pesky questions at that officers' reception or here. Without condamning Princess altogether (mistakes happen everywhere). But this time it's an issue that I simply can't forget, and I think this thread will stay alive until either Princess has come forward with some convincing details about how+why this went down, or the Bermuda+Panama investigations come up with the answers.

[whitecap]

How can you be sure? Honestly, in this entire matter no one can be certain of anything but that there were three distinct events: 1.) 50 Cents adrift; 2.) the birders' sighting "something"; and 3.) that the Princess communication system failed. Oh, and that there is enough concern on the part of two governmental authorities about the possible connection between the three that they've launched investigations.

 

That's really all I'm "sure" of.

 

I am sure because Princess has acknowledged publically that a lack of communication took place. You don't believe they would have then addressed their employees about that issue? I am an optimist and have faith in most people that they try to always do the right thing.

[whitecap]

I'm also really interested to see if Princess already took measures to make sure something like that doesnt happen again in their fleet. We booked a Princess cruise a few days ago leaving next Thursday, and I'll make sure to ask any officers and some other crew I meet if there have been changes aboard (the Crown in this case). And I had a pretty bad gut feeling actually giving them business (but the route+deal were too good, and my gf really wanted to do this Greece-tour), because I really wanna see how they handle this case as a company, and so far I'm less than impressed. Their sentence in their new press release 5 days ago (http://www.princess.com/news/article.jsp?newsArticleId=na1237) "Our investigation has not yet concluded" really shocked me. One month??? It's either a lie or incompetence.

 

I think a balanced approach is good - we are their customers and we also should hold this company accountable when they mess up...be it with pesky questions at that officers' reception or here. Without condamning Princess altogether (mistakes happen everywhere). But this time it's an issue that I simply can't forget, and I think this thread will stay alive until either Princess has come forward with some convincing details about how+why this went down, or the Bermuda+Panama investigations come up with the answers.

 

So that I am clear, you have such concerns about the safety of Princess cruises that you booked a Princess cruise with your GIRLFRIEND! Um, what a lucky gal she is! Your post speaks volumes.

[vkuehne]

Hm, I didnt really say that I'm concerned at all about the safety of Princess cruises (more than on any other cruise line), but I guess some people like to read what they want ;-) I am concerned about the communication issues aboard the Star and fleetwide though, and I want them to be addressed so it never happens to me that I'm on a ship that sails by while some poor chaps that already have it much worse than us die out there of dehydration. So no, I'm not concerned about our personal safety but I don't want our pleasureboats to ignore cries for help again. Ever.

[whitecap]

Hm, I didnt really say that I'm concerned at all about the safety of Princess cruises (more than on any other cruise line), but I guess some people like to read what they want ;-) I am concerned about the communication issues aboard the Star and fleetwide though, and I want them to be addressed so it never happens to me that I'm on a ship that sails by while some poor chaps that already have it much worse than us die out there of dehydration. So no, I'm not concerned about our personal safety but I don't want our pleasureboats to ignore cries for help again. Ever.

 

Your post, once again, shows your bias, quoting your last sentence, "but I don't want our pleasure boats to ignore cries for help AGAIN". Apparently your investigation is complete! Please share your finds with the rest of us. On second thought, don't. I have a cruise to finish getting ready for. Pleasant travels!

[vkuehne]

Yeah, I'm biased in that I believe there is a high chance the birders actually did see that boat. Otherwise Princess would have dismissed this whole issue without so much as a press release. That they went into full defense mode shows that they at least also think there is a high chance it was to the boat.

 

Of course I can't investigate, but all publically accessible info so far has pointed that way. And yes, I admit it's a belief only.