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Burial at sea on future cruises due to death on board

cruisetheworld67

By cruisetheworld67,
in Holland America Line

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cruisetheworld67

cruisetheworld67

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I think this may be a reality in the future.  Just as in WWII  when the US NAvy would have burials at sea.  If a passenger dies while on board....have a ceremony and then dispose of the body over board. The ceremony would be held on the Promenade deck with the Captain and chaplain officiating. The ceremony could be filmed so that the family would have a keepsake of their loved one. Plus, this would definitely save the family time and money and heartache trying to have a body shipped home from half way around the world.

 

This would be especially helpful on longer cruises if many people die on a specific cruise. Where would the crew stack the bodies? On the Zaandam, 4 people died. I am sure the Medical Center has an ice tray for 1 ...maybe 2 bodies....then what? Store the bodies in the walk -in cooler next to the chicken and salad to be served that night in the MDR???

 

Also, with any virus, I would think the safest thing would be to get rid of the body ASAP. Who knows about transmissibility the longer a corpse remains on board.....especially  multiple corpses.   I know I would not be comfortable knowing that bodies were somewhere on the ship!

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iancal

iancal

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No issue with that.  It would save DW all the angst and cost of dealing with a funeral and with funeral homes. 

 

 BUT....would she get a port tax credit for any ports that I did not quite make it to?  Plus of course the daily gratuity charge rebate.

Edited by iancal
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Copper10-8 "Live from...." Rare

Copper10-8

Posted
Posted
49 minutes ago, cruisetheworld67 said:

I think this may be a reality in the future.  Just as in WWII  when the US NAvy would have burials at sea.  If a passenger dies while on board....have a ceremony and then dispose of the body over board. The ceremony would be held on the Promenade deck with the Captain and chaplain officiating. The ceremony could be filmed so that the family would have a keepsake of their loved one. Plus, this would definitely save the family time and money and heartache trying to have a body shipped home from half way around the world.

 

This would be especially helpful on longer cruises if many people die on a specific cruise. Where would the crew stack the bodies? On the Zaandam, 4 people died. I am sure the Medical Center has an ice tray for 1 ...maybe 2 bodies....then what? Store the bodies in the walk -in cooler next to the chicken and salad to be served that night in the MDR???

 

Also, with any virus, I would think the safest thing would be to get rid of the body ASAP. Who knows about transmissibility the longer a corpse remains on board.....especially  multiple corpses.   I know I would not be comfortable knowing that bodies were somewhere on the ship!

 

First of all, this will not happen; the four deceased on Zaandam were an anomaly. Every HAL ship has a temperature-controlled "coffin store" / morgue located on B-Deck aft. The temperature inside the morgue is regulated from the engine control room of the ship by engineering officers. I can guarantee you that there is adequate space inside this location as opposed to "one or two ice trays" and no human remains will ever be stored "next to the chicken and salad to be served that night in the MDR." There will be no human remains deposited in the ocean off Promenade deck in full view of other passengers from that deck and/or their balconies above.   

 

Death at sea from natural causes, especially on longer voyages, unfortunately is not an uncommon event. There is a strict procedure in place that is followed to the tee and includes the passenger physician preparing an initial death notification report, the security officer conducting a separate investigation, and the reporting of the event, prior arrival, to the local authorities of the next port of call for onward notification to local law enforcement. They - local LE - will conduct their own investigation upon the ship's arrival, which includes interviews with the next of kin onboard, pax physician and the SECO. The remains will then be gathered by either the land-based medical examiner (coroner's office) or a local mortuary and will be transported off the vessel with the utmost of respect afforded the deceased and his/her family. This includes ship security temporarily stopping all crew movement on A-Deck on the route to the gangway, as well as temporarily halting passenger egress and ingress at the gangway itself until the remains are inside the hearse/transport vehicle.

 

Burial at sea by the world's naval forces during times of war is a completely different experience not suitable for cruise ships  

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iancal

iancal

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A friend of ours has his mother in a care home in Ottawa, Canada.  No virus issue so far at  the home.  But yesterday he got a chilling  email advising him that in the event of a death, arrangements must be made to remove the body to a funeral home within three business hours of notification of death.  Not certain if this is limited to covis related deaths or just the usual.

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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10 minutes ago, iancal said:

A friend of ours has his mother in a care home in Ottawa, Canada.  No virus issue so far at  the home.  But yesterday he got a chilling  email advising him that in the event of a death, arrangements must be made to remove the body to a funeral home within three business hours of notification of death.  Not certain if this is limited to covis related deaths or just the usual.

Pretty much normal. When my father died I got a call from the care home he was in at about 2am. They wanted him moved pretty much immediately. A nearby funeral home took care of that, and later helped with other arrangements.

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ON cruiser

ON cruiser

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50 minutes ago, Copper10-8 said:

Death at sea from natural causes, especially on longer voyages, unfortunately is not an uncommon event. There is a strict procedure in place that is followed to the tee and includes the passenger physician preparing an initial death notification report, the security officer conducting a separate investigation, and the reporting of the event, prior arrival, to the local authorities of the next port of call for onward notification to local law enforcement. They - local LE - will conduct their own investigation upon the ship's arrival, which includes interviews with the next of kin onboard, pax physician and the SECO. The remains will then be gathered by either the land-based medical examiner (coroner's office) or a local mortuary and will be transported off the vessel with the utmost of respect afforded the deceased and his/her family. This includes ship security temporarily stopping all crew movement on A-Deck on the route to the gangway, as well as temporarily halting passenger egress and ingress at the gangway itself until the remains are inside the hearse/transport vehicle.

 

Burial at sea by the world's naval forces during times of war is a completely different experience not suitable for cruise ships  

 

 Thanks, Copper10-8, for that helpful (and reassuring) explanation. Yet, was it always that way? I wonder because I recall reading now retired Captain Mateboar's very amusing stories of his life at sea--a number of funny vignettes, including one story about two not-so-nice elderly sisters, one of whom passed away on a world cruise, and the other one asking for a burial at sea, with the casket built on the ship being lost during a trial run, etc. A most amusing tale...

 

Did the good captain take some literary liberties with that story, or were things different "back then"?

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Copper10-8 "Live from...." Rare

Copper10-8

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2 minutes ago, ON cruiser said:

 Thanks, Copper10-8, for that helpful (and reassuring) explanation. Yet, was it always that way? I wonder because I recall reading now retired Captain Mateboar's very amusing stories of his life at sea--a number of funny vignettes, including one story about two not-so-nice elderly sisters, one of whom passed away on a world cruise, and the other one asking for a burial at sea, with the casket built on the ship being lost during a trial run, etc. A most amusing tale...

 

Did the good captain take some literary liberties with that story, or were things different "back then"?

 

I too, have a copy of retired Captain Hans Mateboer's "The Captain's Log" (as well as the sequel "The Captain's Journal") and, you're right, he has a very funny writing style. The story of "Grisella" and "Anastasia" on the world cruise resulting in Anastasia's unfortunate passing and subsequent burial at sea which presented "some difficulty" to put it mildly, is an interesting one.

 

As an author, the nice captain is afforded some latitude but he does write in his intro "everything you will read has truly happened". By his own description of the story of the two sisters, he was not yet a captain and his first such world cruise was "twenty years ago." He had been employed for five years, and world cruises "started in New York" because "it's tradition." In addition, he has also worked for other cruise lines besides HAL. Bottom line, burials at sea are not being done by HAL and haven't been done in a long time, if ever

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cruisetheworld67

cruisetheworld67

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2 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

 

 

Burial at sea by the world's naval forces during times of war is a completely different experience not suitable for cruise ships  

Disagree. The entire world is at WAR. A far worse war. The corona virus has killed 3 times as many people as US soldiers who died during the Vietnam War in a far shorter time period. And it is not over yet. The experience of death is final  during any war.

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AV8rix

AV8rix

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Posted (edited)
5 minutes ago, cruisetheworld67 said:

Disagree. The entire world is at WAR. A far worse war. The corona virus has killed 3 times as many people as US soldiers who died during the Vietnam War in a far shorter time period. And it is not over yet. The experience of death is final  during any war.

Logistics of cruise ship burial at sea vs military burial at sea?  Seriously? 

 

Apples to oranges.  But I'm not going to get into a p****ing contest with you and trust that Copper John will not either.

Edited by Av8rix
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bouhunter

bouhunter

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3 hours ago, cruisetheworld67 said:

I think this may be a reality in the future.  Just as in WWII  when the US NAvy would have burials at sea.  If a passenger dies while on board....have a ceremony and then dispose of the body over board. The ceremony would be held on the Promenade deck with the Captain and chaplain officiating. The ceremony could be filmed so that the family would have a keepsake of their loved one. Plus, this would definitely save the family time and money and heartache trying to have a body shipped home from half way around the world.

 

This would be especially helpful on longer cruises if many people die on a specific cruise. Where would the crew stack the bodies? On the Zaandam, 4 people died. I am sure the Medical Center has an ice tray for 1 ...maybe 2 bodies....then what? Store the bodies in the walk -in cooler next to the chicken and salad to be served that night in the MDR???

 

Also, with any virus, I would think the safest thing would be to get rid of the body ASAP. Who knows about transmissibility the longer a corpse remains on board.....especially  multiple corpses.   I know I would not be comfortable knowing that bodies were somewhere on the ship!

Either this is said in jest, or it's one of the most ridiculous suggestions ever made here.  And that's saying a lot.

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ON cruiser

ON cruiser

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2 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

1 hour ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

The story of "Grisella" and "Anastasia" on the world cruise resulting in Anastasia's unfortunate passing and subsequent burial at sea which presented "some difficulty" to put it mildly, is an interesting one. As an author, the nice captain is afforded some latitude but he does write in his intro "everything you will read has truly happened". By his own description of the story of the two sisters, he was not yet a captain and his first such world cruise was "twenty years ago." He had been employed for five years, and world cruises "started in New York" because "it's tradition." In addition, he has also worked for other cruise lines besides HAL. Bottom line, burials at sea are not being done by HAL and haven't been done in a long time, if ever

 

Thank, Copper, for the funny memories!...Over the years I have looked for the book, but we likely loaned it out some years back or otherwise it is well hidden.  As to the timeline of when the two sisters were (ahem) reduced to one, probably back in the 1970's or even earlier (as Captain Hans has been retired for some years now). Back then, things were somewhat more "loosey-goosey", I guess.

 

If anyone needs some pleasant diversions or distractions during these times, try to find Captain Mateboar's books. Possibly on E-Bay if not in print.

Edited by ON cruiser
typo correction
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Copper10-8 "Live from...." Rare

Copper10-8

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3 minutes ago, ON cruiser said:

Thank, Cooper, for the funny memories!...Over the years I have looked for the book, but we likely loaned it out some years back or otherwise it is well hidden.  As to the timeline of when the two sisters were (ahem) reduced to one, probably back in the 1970's or even earlier (as Captain Hans has been retired for some years now). Back then, things were somewhat more "loosey-goosey", I guess.

 

If anyone needs some pleasant diversions or distractions during these times, try to find Captain Mateboar's books. Possibly on E-Bay if not in print.

 

 

If you hurry up, Amazon has one left 😉

 

https://www.amazon.com/Captains-Log-Hans-Mateboer/dp/0975948709

 

The journal is looking better

 

https://www.amazon.com/Captains-Journal-Hans-Mateboer/dp/0975948776

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CGTNORMANDIE

CGTNORMANDIE

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59 minutes ago, bouhunter said:

Either this is said in jest, or it's one of the most ridiculous suggestions ever made here.  And that's saying a lot.


Not to mention the fact that the cruise line would probably get fined for polluting the ocean.  😂

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