Vision of the Seas and Rhapsody of the Seas: Royal Caribbean’s ‘Plague Ships’

[Biker19]

13 minutes ago, bajathree said:

What happens when they run out of crew?

Eventually, cancel the sailing, but for now, fewer venues open and cut back in service.

Edited January 5, 2022 by Biker19

[bajathree]

1 minute ago, Biker19 said:

Eventually, cancel the sailing, but for now, fewer venues open and cut back in service.

Thats exactly what they need to do till they get a handle on things....diminishing venues and service shouldn't really be an option.

[RedIguana]

37 minutes ago, ssb said:

The article is very inaccurate.  The cruise ships have revamped their ventilation systems since covid started.  There is no recirculating of air or sharing of air across staterooms.

I doubt the crew have the proper visas to quarantine in the US even if Royal wanted them to. Notice who the article was written by. 

[Jimbo]

2 hours ago, SummerBeee said:

We were supposed to be on Vision right now. 11 nighter to Panama and overnight in Aruba. 
I do hope Vision gets up and running for their scheduled sailing at the end of the month. 

They would need to  set up about 2000 of those fogger to get it clean again before putting passengers on that ship again.

[Jimbo]

1 hour ago, island lady said:

Always loved the sweet little Rhapsody (and in fact our B2B out of Tampa for March this year was cancelled months ago 😞 ).

 

Sitting at St. Maarten right now, and once again sailed past her as she sits in "mothballs/crew hospital" just off shore.  

Are you down wind of her? Be careful.

[Jimbo]

Replying to

@haverlandt

and

@CruiseLaw

Currently on the Jewel; we were turned away from Cartagena this morning because, according to the captain, port authorities were requiring PCR testing 72 hours prior to entry. No word of infected crew or passengers… next stop = Aruba. Will we get in?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Timothy Bliler

 

@tbliler1

·

13h

 

Replying to

@haverlandt

and

@CruiseLaw

It is happening again tonight here in Saint Martin. have over 300 it appears. More than 2.5% tested positive. they are transferring the sick crew to RHAPSODY OF THE SEAS from Symphony Of The Seas. We were supposed to leave at 5:30pm still here waiting for RHAPSODY OF THE SEAS

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Timothy Bliler

 

@tbliler1

·

13h

 

Replying to

@haverlandt

@CruiseLaw

and

@RoyalCaribbean

We got banned on Symphony Of The Seas tonight and can not go to Saint Thomas tomorrow more than 2.5% tested positive for covid...

[later]

Walker strikes again.

[John&LaLa]

1 hour ago, Biker19 said:

Not sure about required, but the CDC site lists her as ready for one and pretty sure RCI will do it.

 

Biker, who wonders what happens when RCI runs out of ships to use to host infected crew (Rhapsody was due to go to the Med at the end of the week and Vision has her first revenue sailing in less than 3 weeks).

 

Borrow some from NCL and Carnival

[chengkp75]

4 hours ago, twangster said:

Very early on the CDC instructions included designating certain ships for this purpose.  

 

Cruise lines comply and now they get blasted for following CDC guidelines.

 

Some people just have it out for the industry.  

Yes, both the cruise lines and the cruising public here on CC felt that this was an enormous overreaction on the part of CDC, but now, feel it is improper.

3 hours ago, MacMarauder said:

Lol what a terrible article, I would like to know what the author thinks the CDC would accomplish by investigating these ships. Or maybe an alternative solution for where to house COVID positive employees. 

Walker conveniently avoids mentioning things that counter his viewpoint.

3 hours ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

The reason some have said NCL is cancelling cruises is due to not having as big a fleet as RCI and not having the extra ships necessary to move things around.  Carnival and RCI are better poised having the additional resources to switch things around at the eleventh hour.  Let's hope they get through this relatively unscathed.

I don't believe NCL's problems are lack of crew, it is lack of qualified crew.  Similar to Cunard's QM2 that had to overstay in Bermuda due to lack of licensed deck officers, I think that NCL is seeing a shortage of the statutory marine crew (deck and engine), which cannot be replaced by moving people around like the hotel side.

3 hours ago, dianajo67 said:

The article is very inaccurate.  The cruise ships have revamped their ventilation systems since covid started.  There is no recirculating of air or sharing of air across staterooms.  

This is so much PR nonsense.  Almost nothing in this drawing is changed from pre-pandemic times, it is just written to include covid catch phrases.  The ships have always had continuous air changes.  It says the system "continuously supplies 100% pure, filtered outside air".  Does it say that the air is 100% renewed every minute?  Nope.  Just that whatever percentage of air volume is delivered is "pure and filtered".  And, since the air comes from outside, as even this drawing states, why does it need to be filtered?  Does the virus follow the ship around like a cloud?  Is it everywhere in the atmosphere?  Their mention of "localized filtration" conveniently does not mention that that filtration is on the recirculation air within a cabin.  The only thing they have done is to upgrade the filtration to HEPA13, and this degrades the HVAC systems capability due to increased resistance from the filters (there were always filters there before), and also more chance that the filters will block and bypass due to their higher filtration.   RCI themselves published a study done on their ships where they looked for viable viral load at the filters on the HVAC system, and found none.

 

Walker has a couple of "articles" linked on his site regarding ship's HVAC systems, and none of them provide any evidence of transmission via HVAC, and even does his usual in trying to use the known effect of air flow within a room on transmissibility, from one person to another within that room, to somehow link this to filters in the HVAC system.

 

And, the two ships are classed as "green" because they are crew only.

[Biker19]

2 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

And, the two ships are classed as "green" because they are crew only.

Rhapsody is no longer green.

[AmazedByCruising]

4 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Yes, both the cruise lines and the cruising public here on CC felt that this was an enormous overreaction on the part of CDC, but now, feel it is improper.

 

What was the purpose of CDC to order designated ships? I mean, instead of sending crew to a quarantine hotel?

 

I do hope that Omicron acts as it is supposed to act in the crew, with just mild symptoms. A side effect of the "plague ships" is that the industry can employ recent recovered crew members, that are very unlikely to be re-infected anytime soon. 

 

[chengkp75]

14 minutes ago, AmazedByCruising said:

What was the purpose of CDC to order designated ships? I mean, instead of sending crew to a quarantine hotel?

It was to prevent overloading of local infrastructure in port cities.  The original idea was for "treatment" ships, "quarantine" ships, and "housing" ships to house the workers needed by the other two ships.

[cruisegus]

9 hours ago, bajathree said:

What happens when they run out of crew?

Recently seen in the Cruise Compass. 

Captain will be serving drinks tonight in the Schooner Bar 8:00 to 11:30,  Vaccinated only.

[Jingerwoppy]

27 minutes ago, cruisegus said:

Recently seen in the Cruise Compass. 

Captain will be serving drinks tonight in the Schooner Bar 8:00 to 11:30,  Vaccinated only.

Should open up Ben and Jerry's to self-serve no charge......

[Morecruisesplz]

22 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

This thread is asinine.

 

[Biker19]

I wonder if Rhapsody may be taking other RCCL affiliated ships' crew as well - she's tied up in St Martin next to Mein Schiff 1 - Odyssey is at the other pier as well. 

[livingonthebeach]

Just wondering why Rhapsody is not in the red status according to the CDC chart.  Is it that ships which are not US flagged and not entering US waters or ports, are exempt from reporting cases?  The Miami Herald pointed out during the early stages of the pandemic that some cruise lines were staying offshore to stay away from the CDC radar. 

[Biker19]

2 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

Just wondering why Rhapsody is not in the red status according to the CDC chart.

The definition of red is rather subjective in that it says :

 

• sustained transmission of COVID-19 or CLI, or
• potential for COVID-19 cases to overwhelm on board medical center resources.

RCI can claim they are not being overwhelmed so they never go to red.

[chengkp75]

1 minute ago, livingonthebeach said:

Just wondering why Rhapsody is not in the red status according to the CDC chart.  Is it that ships which are not US flagged and not entering US waters or ports, are exempt from reporting cases?  The Miami Herald pointed out during the early stages of the pandemic that some cruise lines were staying offshore to stay away from the CDC radar. 

No, since they are in the color code scheme, they are reporting.  It is because they are crew only, and therefore have different criteria for their color code. If you read the requirements for a red status for "restricted passenger voyages", you'll see that the CDC has significant leeway before setting a red status, "In addition, CDC will work closely with the cruise line and consider multiple factors before assigning a “Red” status to the ship."  As for Biker's post, it is the CDC that decides whether the ship will be "overwhelmed" or not, not RCI.

[Biker19]

2 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

As for Biker's post, it is the CDC that decides whether the ship will be "overwhelmed" or not, not RCI.

Unless the CDC has someone on the ship, all the info comes from the ship and RCI, so how does CDC decide such a subjective thing?

[chengkp75]

36 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

Unless the CDC has someone on the ship, all the info comes from the ship and RCI, so how does CDC decide such a subjective thing?

They know the medical facilities onboard, they know the number of cases, and the severity of cases, and they do routinely have investigators join the ship if needed.

[Jimbo]

9 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

They know the medical facilities onboard, they know the number of cases, and the severity of cases, and they do routinely have investigators join the ship if needed.

Would love to be a fly on the wall and see what was reported to the CDC on Harmony's NYE sailing.

Maybe a Holiday schedule and no one working that week...............

Edited January 6, 2022 by Jimbo

[Biker19]

On 1/5/2022 at 1:25 PM, chengkp75 said:

And, the two ships are classed as "green" because they are crew only.

Vision also lost its green status with the CDC update yesterday. The only ship left as green is Ovation.

[alexgtp]

Currently on Anthem, and they did offload crew in St Maarten to one of those ships.  Saw the boat in the distance and the life boats going to and from.

 

[Oceansaway17]

9 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Vision also lost its green status with the CDC update yesterday. The only ship left as green is Ovation.

Yes and today she is in foggy weather in port of Seattle.  I guess captains are swapping out and other crew.  She was floating around Mexico and LA area last week.  

Lucky me I got my crystal this week for Ovation.

 

Any idea why Celebrity is not having the same issues as RCI.  I wish I knew.