Freedom Fire

[TheInnocentAge]

From everything I am reading, I think some praise should be given to the majority of the passengers for following directions and procedures. It is possible that things got back to normal relatively quickly due to passenger cooperation.

 

Great post. Kudos to not only the crew for their actions, but to the passengers that followed instructions, didn't panic, and didn't whine about it afterwards. Their positive reaction to something like this certainly puts some of the CC complaint threads into perspective.

Edited July 27, 2015 by TheInnocentAge

[Capt_BJ]

[Aquahound]

Deleted.

Edited July 27, 2015 by Aquahound

[Lady Chew]

HAL requires them as well. Princess requires you to go back to your cabin (if possible) to get a warm coat , medicines and life jackets. If not possible one will be provided.

 

We did not need to bring them on our HAL cruise in February. Zuiderdam. Wonder if it varies by ship, as so many things do.

[Aquahound]

HAL requires them as well. Princess requires you to go back to your cabin (if possible) to get a warm coat , medicines and life jackets. If not possible one will be provided.

 

Are you sure about that? We didn't have to on my 2 HAL cruises....Nieuw Amsterdam and Zuiderdam. :confused:

[Tagsalong]

HAL requires them as well. Princess requires you to go back to your cabin (if possible) to get a warm coat , medicines and life jackets. If not possible one will be provided.

 

We were on the Regal Princess in March and the announcements clearly stated that the life jackets were optional during muster. I was told this was a trial run for Princess. Then when we did the transatlantic on the Caribbean Princess in May, it was back to the procedure of going to your room to get your life jackets for muster, ie not optional. I asked about the Regal trial and no one on the Caribbean Princess knew anything about it. At least it says that corporate is considering the pros and cons.

 

Oh well, now back to the Freedom Fire topic.

Edited July 27, 2015 by Tagsalong

[merlindog22]

Here is a pic I snapped disembarking--- lots of fire extinguishers being replaced

 

One has to ask the question what would have happened if the ship had re-ignighted, with all these extinguishers having being used. They still had to get back to there home port. I have also heard that Royal Caribbean tried to hush this fire up abit with people on the land, it would appear as they should have had an inspection before they left, which apparently didn't happen. There could be a bit of a fine in the pipeline.

[Cindy]

One has to ask the question what would have happened if the ship had re-ignighted, with all these extinguishers having being used. They still had to get back to there home port. I have also heard that Royal Caribbean tried to hush this fire up abit with people on the land, it would appear as they should have had an inspection before they left, which apparently didn't happen. There could be a bit of a fine in the pipeline.

 

Please share where you got the information there wasn't an inspection. Speculating on things like that really serves no purpose other than to upset future passengers who may be new to cruising or unfamiliar with safety procedures.

[Cricket63]

I don't post a lot on here but really felt it was important to let everyone know what a great job RCCL did with the fire. We were on our balcony on the 10th floor and saw the smoke but did not think that much of it because we were pulling into port and thought it was just a normal amount coming out of the stacks. We could not smell the smoke but had just made a comment that I had never seen it so black before. Within a few minutes they issued the alarm and made the Bravo, Bravo, Bravo with what decks the fires were on.

 

The crew was excellent! They all remained calm and helped older passengers get down the stairs. I only had a slight panic because my son was still asleep and in the cabin across the hall. I banged on his door but the alarm did wake him up. The rest of my family were with me except my Mom and brother but I knew they were together and we met at the muster station almost immediately.

 

We stayed outside for about an hour but with a lot of updates from the Captain and then they moved us into various places on the ship but kept groups together. The had water and sandwiches available almost immediately.

 

Last night they had the fire crew come up on stage. If I remember correctly, there were about 80 of them. They, of course, had a standing ovation!

 

RCCL did allow everyone to call home and free WiFi that day. The also compensated each cabin, various amounts, for the inconvenience.

 

Again, we always here the negative about RCCL and just wanted to give some good news for once!

 

I had a friend on this ship, and she told me the exact same thing! Great job RCI!

[Aquahound]

One has to ask the question what would have happened if the ship had re-ignighted, with all these extinguishers having being used. They still had to get back to there home port. I have also heard that Royal Caribbean tried to hush this fire up abit with people on the land, it would appear as they should have had an inspection before they left, which apparently didn't happen. There could be a bit of a fine in the pipeline.

 

Please share where you got the information there wasn't an inspection. Speculating on things like that really serves no purpose other than to upset future passengers who may be new to cruising or unfamiliar with safety procedures.

 

I agree with Cindy. How and why are you coming up with these assumptions? Who are the people on shore RCI was trying to be "hush" with, and what "inspections" are you talking about? :confused:

[chengkp75]

One has to ask the question what would have happened if the ship had re-ignighted, with all these extinguishers having being used. They still had to get back to there home port. I have also heard that Royal Caribbean tried to hush this fire up abit with people on the land, it would appear as they should have had an inspection before they left, which apparently didn't happen. There could be a bit of a fine in the pipeline.

 

If you don't know what your speculating on, you might want to keep it to yourself. First off, while that looks like a lot of fire extinguishers, it most likely represents about 20% of the ship's total. I'm a bit surprised at the number used, but I suspect these were used for hot spot remediation. Fire extinguishers, while the first response in the initial moments of a fire, are about the last resort in a fire like this one. Water mist and water spray, along with water stream are your best firefighting media. Secondly, do you know from this photo whether or not the ship received "loaner" extinguishers at ports prior to the end of the cruise? This is extremely common for ships, and most ports have suppliers of SOLAS equipment.

 

Whether or not there was an investigation or inspection by the Jamaican officials is their business, not much RCI could have done to "hide" this from them. If they did or did not inspect the ship, they gave the ship clearance to sail. Class society would also have been notified, and they would have not allowed the ship to sail if they felt it wasn't safe. Depending on what is damaged, each country called at could inspect to determine the ship's safety. As for any inspections for safety or repair, except for each country checking for SOLAS requirements as "port states", the only ones that count are the "flag state" and class. You don't "hush things up" with class, as they can pull your certificate of seaworthiness, removing not only your insurance, but your certificate of registry (title).

 

Without getting into who "they" are that tried to hush things up, or who "they" are that it was hushed from, who do you think the fine would come from? The USCG? They will be notified when the ship is entering US waters, and if some equipment for navigation, propulsion, or steering is affected, they can deny the ship the ability to dock, or require a tug escort, but they can't fine the ship for anything. When the ship docks, the USCG has the right to inspect the ship for SOLAS compliance, and if they find the damage affects the ship's safety or seaworthiness, they can detain the ship from sailing until repairs are completed. Again, no fine. If the USCG thinks that any other agency: foreign nation as port state, the flag state, or the class society, should have done a better inspection prior to the ship reaching the US, they still cannot fine the ship for this.

 

I agree with Cindy. How and why are you coming up with these assumptions? Who are the people on shore RCI was trying to be "hush" with, and what "inspections" are you talking about? :confused:

 

Spent way too much time answering an uninformed opinion, but just wanted to clear the air for the general cruising public, as I've always done with incidents like this.

[Daghis]

Spent way too much time answering an uninformed opinion, but just wanted to clear the air for the general cruising public, as I've always done with incidents like this.

I, for one, really appreciate your time and efforts in sharing your experience and information with the rest of us. Thank you!

Edited July 28, 2015 by Daghis

[jillpra]

I, as well. Helped me feel less stressed since the fire understanding how fires are fought at sea vs. land. My husband is retired from the service for 32 years so he has felt comfortable and safe knowing the measures that were taken. Leaving in 12 days! Can't wait!

[beachnative]

Thanks chengkp75 for another clarifying and informative post. I always look for what you have to say in a situation like this.

[Aquahound]

Spent way too much time answering an uninformed opinion, but just wanted to clear the air for the general cruising public, as I've always done with incidents like this.

 

Nah! You tend to be much more detailed than me, and we all appreciate it! :)

[reallyitsmema]

I agree with Cindy. How and why are you coming up with these assumptions? Who are the people on shore RCI was trying to be "hush" with, and what "inspections" are you talking about? :confused:

 

I know on the day of the fire, there was a USCG tweet saying they would inspect the ship upon return to Port Canaveral. I think it was quoted in the now locked thread but I haven't gone looking.

[chengkp75]

I know on the day of the fire, there was a USCG tweet saying they would inspect the ship upon return to Port Canaveral. I think it was quoted in the now locked thread but I haven't gone looking.

 

As is their prerogative as a "port state" agency, and only what I would expect from the USCG. However, the poster intimated that some inspection was bypassed prior to leaving Jamaica.

[chengkp75]

Nah! You tend to be much more detailed than me, and we all appreciate it! :)

 

Over the last 2.5 years, I've defended Carnival, RCI, Oceania, and even Costa (though never that pond scum Schettino) against unfounded and uninformed accusations when marine incidents happen. Hopefully, I've brought some truth to shipboard operations and emergency procedures. And I've slammed lines like Silverseas and Carnival when they warranted it.

 

Wow, has it only been a couple years? Sure enjoy the dialog on CC. (mostly :D)

[Cindy]

Spent way too much time answering an uninformed opinion, but just wanted to clear the air for the general cruising public, as I've always done with incidents like this.

 

Thanks for another great explanation! I always appreciate your thorough descriptions and statements of fact, especially when emotions are running high!:)

 

It seems like so many people just like to stir the pot. I'm glad we have posters like Chengkp75 who truly have inside knowledge and are willing to share it with us.

[QueensChick]

Wow, has it only been a couple years? Sure enjoy the dialog on CC. (mostly :D)

 

 

Thank you for your many informative posts. They are greatly appreciated.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[CVU]

I am so glad everyone is okay. I will certainly pay much closer attention at drills and muster station orientation now.

 

We all complain about having to go through the muster station drill, but when it is needed, it is good to know where to go. A necessary "inconvenience" that may have prevented major damage if the fire had been worse.

 

I am glad they were prepared and had a good fire crew.

 

Good Point, and thanks for all the great info on this thread.:)

 

We are so annoyed with the people that continue to TALK loudly and drink? as well, while the whole Muster is going on. Been getting this way for some time and becoming more so.

 

Then when the Capt. comes on to speak it is worse! I would think everyone would want to know what the Capt had to say??

Our-- Weather, high seas?, Huge storm on the way?? NOPE they get louder......and no one can hear.:eek:

 

I think RCL needs to do something about people that do not pay attention at this important time. Others want to hear what is said.

[SPacificbound]

Over the last 2.5 years, I've defended Carnival, RCI, Oceania, and even Costa (though never that pond scum Schettino) against unfounded and uninformed accusations when marine incidents happen. Hopefully, I've brought some truth to shipboard operations and emergency procedures. And I've slammed lines like Silverseas and Carnival when they warranted it.

 

Wow, has it only been a couple years? Sure enjoy the dialog on CC. (mostly :D)

 

Thank you for all of the information that you give us, it is truly appreciated.

[OSUZorba]

I think RCL needs to do something about people that do not pay attention at this important time. Others want to hear what is said.

 

This is why airlines have started trying to make their pre-flight briefing funny, it gets people to shut up and pay attention. It seems to be fairly effective, especially on Southwest where it changes every flight and isn't recorded.

 

On my last Disney cruise, I couldn't hear anything at the muster. The instructions were given over tiny little bullhorns and everyone was talking. Very annoying.

[chengkp75]

One has to ask the question what would have happened if the ship had re-ignighted, with all these extinguishers having being used. They still had to get back to there home port. I have also heard that Royal Caribbean tried to hush this fire up abit with people on the land, it would appear as they should have had an inspection before they left, which apparently didn't happen. There could be a bit of a fine in the pipeline.

 

I put on my dry suit and decided to enter the scummy pond of Jim Walker to see if he had jumped on the POA lifeboat accident already (he had), and saw a couple of posts about the Freedom fire. I now see where this poster got his/her information.

 

Walker claims that the corporate PR statement contradicts the Captain's video. The Captain states that the fire started in the engine room, and went up the engine casing to deck 14. As I've stated, the engine room and casing from deck 0 to deck 14 is one common space, there are no doors, and no full decks between. Corporate states the fire was contained to "mechanical spaces", which is true. The fire never left a mechanical space and entered a public or non-engineering crew space.

 

As I suspected, the Captain noted the large number of "hot spots" and embers, which relates to the number of fire extinguishers apparently discharged.

 

As opposed to the above poster, the Captain clearly states that the Jamaican authorities gave clearance to sail, so there was an "investigation" to the satisfaction of the "port state" at the time. This is the legal, international requirement.

 

Walker then takes a passenger video and makes comments about it. He says "so the ship was burning for 35 minutes before docking" making it sound as if there was another option to proceeding to the dock in order to make a dockside evacuation possible. He also comments that no crew were seen on the video (about 3 minutes long). At this time, the crew are doing two things: deck and engine personnel are preparing for maneuvering the ship into harbor and docking, and most crew are responding to the fire at their emergency stations. There would not be a lot of crew assigned to the open pool/sports decks during an emergency (probably 3-4 each deck, just to clear folks and send them to their muster, when the alarm sounds).

 

Anyway, I hope I've debunked any idea of a cover-up or negligence on the part of the company to hide the truth. Very obviously, the Captain was given directions from Corporate to make the video, so there was no real effort by shore staff to hide the details, but the Captain, by his job, would tend to give more detail than a PR release.

[TheInnocentAge]

Anyway, I hope I've debunked any idea of a cover-up or negligence on the part of the company to hide the truth. Very obviously, the Captain was given directions from Corporate to make the video, so there was no real effort by shore staff to hide the details, but the Captain, by his job, would tend to give more detail than a PR release.

 

Thanks for the detailed facts and follow-up contained in your recent posts. It's always refreshing to see posts that are full of information instead of speculation.