cruising with disabilities

[marlebone]

I walk fairly well, but have sifficullty standing in one place for even a short time.  How can I be accomodated during boat drills?

[Essiesmom]

There is a forum here for disabled cruising, where this is often mentioned.  Located under Special Interest Cruising.  I have the same problem.  I can’t stand in one place or I will collapse.  I have to keep moving.  Not many ships have safety drills outside by the lifeboats any more.  Most are inside in areas where there is some seating.  The secret is to go early to your muster station to snag a seat.  There is talk that when cruising resumes, muster drill will be on TV in your cabin.  So, stay tuned.  EM

[ColeThornton]

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/114-disabled-cruise-travel/

[Flatbush Flyer]

49 minutes ago, marlebone said:

I walk fairly well, but have sifficullty standing in one place for even a short time.  How can I be accomodated during boat drills?

Ask for a chair.

[mjkacmom]

Most muster locations have seating, just go a bit early.

[1025cruise]

Here is the answer pre-covid.

 

For the ships that still have you line up outside, let them know you can't stand and they will direct you to an indoor location for people that need assistance. Might be beneficial to show up a few minutes early.

 

 

[lenquixote66]

4 hours ago, marlebone said:

I walk fairly well, but have sifficullty standing in one place for even a short time.  How can I be accomodated during boat drills?

You can approach one of the crew members and explain the above to her or him.They will let you sit indoors.If your spouse is with you they will allow her or him to sit with you.I know this from experience.

[marlebone]

I am now told I will be able to do the drill in my cabin!

[Heidi13]

13 minutes ago, marlebone said:

I am now told I will be able to do the drill in my cabin!

 

Unfortunately this is the worst possible option, with respect to your safety onboard the vessel. One can only hope that you do not experience any situation that requires the Master to sound the General Emergency Signal.

 

Personally, if a cruise line provided that response to my question, they would have received a cancellation request.

 

You have received a number of vastly superior options from the previous responses.

[Flatbush Flyer]

15 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Unfortunately this is the worst possible option, with respect to your safety onboard the vessel. One can only hope that you do not experience any situation that requires the Master to sound the General Emergency Signal.

 

Personally, if a cruise line provided that response to my question, they would have received a cancellation request.

 

You have received a number of vastly superior options from the previous responses.

Agreed.

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

44 minutes ago, marlebone said:

I am now told I will be able to do the drill in my cabin!

Don’t do that. Big mistake. You won’t realize the value of that drill until you need the real thing. And then it will be way too late.

[bonsai3s]

10 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

You can approach one of the crew members and explain the above to her or him.They will let you sit indoors.If your spouse is with you they will allow her or him to sit with you.I know this from experience.

Agree, this was also our experience.

[lissie]

19 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Unfortunately this is the worst possible option, with respect to your safety onboard the vessel. One can only hope that you do not experience any situation that requires the Master to sound the General Emergency Signal.

 

Personally, if a cruise line provided that response to my question, they would have received a cancellation request.

 

You have received a number of vastly superior options from the previous responses.

YOu probably won't be cruising then - post covid this seems to be what's happeneing - you watch the video in your cabin and then there is some system where you go to your muster station and "check in" 

 

Given the chaos of the muster drill on our one and only cruise (Cunard) - I think this will be an improvement 

[Flatbush Flyer]

4 minutes ago, lissie said:

YOu probably won't be cruising then - post covid this seems to be what's happeneing - you watch the video in your cabin and then there is some system where you go to your muster station and "check in" 

 

Given the chaos of the muster drill on our one and only cruise (Cunard) - I think this will be an improvement 

You’ve just made the point of the importance of an actual drill. Hopefully, Cunard learned from the experience and have made necessary improvements. On the other hand, they would have no idea if a “cabin” muster participant fully understood the procedures.

[zekekelso]

Watching the safety video from your cabin is the future. We’ll all be doing it that way soon enough. Then take a minute to physically go to your muster station. 

[Flatbush Flyer]

 

2 minutes ago, zekekelso said:

Watching the safety video from your cabin is the future. We’ll all be doing it that way soon enough. Then take a minute to physically go to your muster station. 

And a short-lived future it will be after the first successful lawsuit claiming inadequate SOLAS practices as the cause of an injury incurred in a live emergency evac.

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, lissie said:

YOu probably won't be cruising then - post covid this seems to be what's happeneing - you watch the video in your cabin and then there is some system where you go to your muster station and "check in" 

 

Given the chaos of the muster drill on our one and only cruise (Cunard) - I think this will be an improvement 

 

If we never cruise again, so be it, as we place a greater emphasis on our safety than convenience. With over 40 years at sea and extensive training/experience in the human factors of responding to a marine emergency, I might just know a little.

 

Prior to the Costa Concordia, SOLAS permitted a Muster Drill to be held within 24 hrs of departure. Most cruise lines held it prior to departure for the majority of pax, but some late arrivals were addressed the next day.

 

Costa who had pax boarding almost every day, utilised the Muster Drill loophole to hold drills every 2nd day. Therefore, the pax that joined in Civitavecchia had not attended a drill, only the cabin TV film. This fact was noted in the accident investigation report as a "Non-compliance" and one of the recommendation was for proper drill at every port.

 

SOLAS was amended to require drills before departure. Maritime experts have deemed the cabin TV insufficient, so when the next unfortunate incident happens, I fully expect a flurry of lawsuits from pax for dumbing down the Muster Drill, comprimising their safety.

[bonsai3s]

20 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

If we never cruise again, so be it, as we place a greater emphasis on our safety than convenience. With over 40 years at sea and extensive training/experience in the human factors of responding to a marine emergency, I might just know a little.

 

Prior to the Costa Concordia, SOLAS permitted a Muster Drill to be held within 24 hrs of departure. Most cruise lines held it prior to departure for the majority of pax, but some late arrivals were addressed the next day.

 

Costa who had pax boarding almost every day, utilised the Muster Drill loophole to hold drills every 2nd day. Therefore, the pax that joined in Civitavecchia had not attended a drill, only the cabin TV film. This fact was noted in the accident investigation report as a "Non-compliance" and one of the recommendation was for proper drill at every port.

 

SOLAS was amended to require drills before departure. Maritime experts have deemed the cabin TV insufficient, so when the next unfortunate incident happens, I fully expect a flurry of lawsuits from pax for dumbing down the Muster Drill, comprimising their safety.

 

Who was responsible for the Concordia? Answer: The stupid Captain.

A crew member who was on the Concordia said almost all passengers panicked...it was total chaos and pandemonium. She said not much was said about the many crew members (mostly from tbe Philippines), who risked their own lives to rescue or assist passengers. 

[Heidi13]

56 minutes ago, bonsai3s said:

 

Who was responsible for the Concordia? Answer: The stupid Captain.

A crew member who was on the Concordia said almost all passengers panicked...it was total chaos and pandemonium. She said not much was said about the many crew members (mostly from tbe Philippines), who risked their own lives to rescue or assist passengers. 

 

The Captain was clearly responsible, and more importantly failed to perform in accordance with the best practice of Seamen. As outlined in the Marine Casualty Report, others were also found wanting, as were company procedures.

 

Suggest reading the Full Investigation Report. 

[Covepointcruiser]

I have experienced numerous musters on Cunard, none of them were chaotic.   Where were the passengers from and on what ship?   Cunard has always taken safety seriously every time we sailed.

[donaldsc]

If you feel that you may have trouble walking in a true emergency, make sure that staff knows about it so that they can help you to get where you need to be.

 

DON

[1025cruise]

For the cruises that started this week, it appears that Muster is a combination of watching a video in your cabin, then going to your muster station to check in with a crew member. Not sure how long this procedure will last. At this point, I'd just mention it to the crew member that you have issues and might need assistance. I assume they will properly annotate that on their notes.

 

I know each time I've attended an on-deck muster drill since I developed standing issues (I have a bad back, its not obvious looking at me), when I've been redirected inside they have always notated who was there, what station they were supposed to be at, and if they would need assistance in an actual emergency.