First Person Account of the fire on the Star

[GoodAsGold]

An entire forest can burn down as the result of one cigarette. It doesn't take much to ignite. Add the windy conditions of the sea to this scenario as well as combustible material and you've got a recipe for disaster. Just like when the fire season is at its peak, the grasses are dry and the weather is windy.

 

 

Pics only show a badly damaged exterior. This was an out of control fire for awhile, and started from a single cigerette, if you believe everything. A one room fire to start, to me indicates, many failures, to allow it to damage a ship this badly. The interiors of the ship were also damaged, with smoke, fire, and water. All of the water used to put out the fire, went down into many rooms not damaged by the initial fire. So before you pass out and acknowledge praise, realize, maybe it should have been contained much better. This ship will be out of service for not weeks, but monthes. Metrowon

[metrowon]

I am live in the internet cafe on the Star Princess. Needed a break from the sunshine. Thought that the article written by the MSNBC poster was very accurate. We have not had our flights posted yet, so are enjoying a "not quite at sea" day. The crew handled this emergency so well they are all heros. I intend to write my own first person account when I get home, but just wanted to praise the captain and his crew for their heroic efforts containing this fire. The life boats were in position and if the fire had not been contained I have no doubt that we would have been escorted to the life boats. I am amazed that their was only one loss of life. The sprinklers and fire doors probably saved many lives. We are on the Lido deck on the side of the fire. Can see that cabins charred from our balcony. We have only a faint smell of smoke in our room, probably do to the automatic closing of the fire dooors. Anyway, I will write later, and probably check this site later if anyone has any questions. God Bless the Captain and crew of the Star Princess.

You haven't seen the damage, nor were you allowed into the affected areas. This fire was not contained as you stated. The sprinklers and fire doors probably saved many lives is an assuption, do you know for a fact that they worked? This fire was not contained. Wait and read the reports before you praise anyone. If the life boats were swung out, than it was far more serious. Somethings wrong with firefighting capabilities in board cruise ships. Metrowon

[MikeKool]

"In my opinion Princess handled this fire far better than Carnival"

 

MikeKool- FYI- Princess is owned by Carnival- they are the same company!

 

I think that it was handled well- A middle of the night fire in the cabin area while at sea- Kudos for the captain, crew and passengers!!!

DUH!!!! No kidding Carnival owns Princess. Carnival did NOT own Princess at the time of the Ecstacy fire. I just think Princess personnel were better trained since before Carnivor took them over!

[samtig]

Cruising is no more dangerous, & probably safer than a lot of activities. Accidents/incidents happen anywhere. Using common sense in foreign countries will go a long way in avoiding problems. Many people assume they can carry on as if in the US. Accidents still happen even if the most caution is taken. Such is life. I feel sorry for those involved in this tragedy.

[m steve]

I have taken a number of cruises and have never seen a smoker drop a cigarette on the deck, flick them overboard or fail to use an ashtray. Perhaps the ships should have more ashtrays available in each cabin. Nor have I ever smelled smoke except in a smoking area. Unless someone is smoking a cigar I have never noticed the odor of smoke on a balcony. Of course the vigilantes jump on evry smoker every chance they get.

If the fire was at 3:10 am there may be a way to find out why the room sprinkler didn't put it out and how could it spread so fast? What was someone doing smoking at that time? My companion smokes and no matter the hour goes onto the balcony.

I am sure the ship would like to blame a single smoker rather than investigate the real cause of this widely effective fire. Was only outer cabins affected by the fire or did it start in an inside cabin or did it start from an electrical malfunction?

Let's see what the fire investigation shows rather than further attacks on smokers, drinkers, gamblers and whatever else the haters choose. It could have been "an act of God", now whose God can they blame?

[samtig]

I agree, we are waiting for the results of the investigation to be made public, but some enjoy speculating & attacking their pet peeves . I am a believer that when it's your time to go, it doesn't matter where you are, it'll happen. We assume risk in everything we do. I'm sure this was a very scarey situation for those on board.

[sunshine426]

Wow thanks for the "warm" comment metrowan! I am on the Star Princess, are you? I am quite aware that quite often outside news can have more information. However, remember how sensationalized many reports can be. yes this was a significant fire with serious damage. Yes, I encounted a fire door, had to turn around and use the secondary escape route, Crew were standing in each door way and instructing us. Our cabins on the Lido deck did not have any smoke smell or water damage, as the sprinklers were not set off, probably becuase those fire doors helped. I would be very interested in hearing from a fire inspector if these precuations helped. And yes, I do thank the fire crew who I did see donning air tanks and protective overalls as they prepared to go into the fire area. Anyway, we are all fine. My two daughters were on the other side of the ship, and took the main stair ways down to muster b and did encounter smoke, but still the crew were their guiding them and instructing passengers. We'll be happy to answer questions, but please do not lecture me on what I know and do not know!

[MamaParrotHead]

I actually stopped bringing my Glad Plug In air fresheners on the ship because I heard they were a fire hazard. I love them because they are a night light, extra plug and air freshener all in one but I don't use them anywhere anymore. Not worth the risk.

 

JMHO

 

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/glade.asp The rumor about it being a fire hazard hasn't ever been proven, nor have the Plug-Ins been blamed for a single fire.

[samtig]

As I use these, thanks for the info MaMa!

[cruzincurt]

As a engineer involved in fire protection, I am courious also why the sprinkler system did not contain the fire in the single room. Why is there so much damage on the outside of the ship? I am going to speculate....why not. I wonder if someone had a "gel" candle going with the balcony door open. Those that have been in balcony cabins know that when the balcony door is open and you open the inner corridor door there is a tremendous rush of air through the room. Great to feed air to the fire.

 

If someone was smoking in bed, the sprinkler should have doused it. Remember, every room has a smoke detector that should go into alarm first. It takes at least 135 deg F of heat at the sprinkler heat to cause it to blow. Its not like on TV where all the sprinkler heads go off, only the one directly affected by the heat goes off. Due to the room configuration, typically, just like a hotel room, they install a sidewall head so they don't have to run pipe out into the room. So a fire further out in the room takes longer to affect the sprinkler head.

 

I find it hard to believe a cigarette landing on the balcony deck caused the fire. I am going to speculate that there was some accelerant involved, such as spilled candle wax or "gel". Maybe the rubber deck mat caught on fire. I have been on my balcony when cigarette butts have come sailing over from above. I watched one land on the life boat cover below.

 

Will we stop cruising? No, I have a much better chance of survival on a modern cruise ship than say an airplane. We were on the SS Norway two years ago when the boiler blew up and several crew members were killed. Lucky for us we were docked and had the aid of land based fire fighters.

 

The purpose of a sprinkler is to contain the fire until outside forces can arrive. Be careful, pay attention to the exits and the muster drill.

[dobie]

Sunshine, thank you for continuing to post. Don't let the negative attitude of others get you down. Any word on when you will be going home? Is the rest of the ship operating normally? Dining, pools, etc? Thanks for making the best of a horrible situation and keeping us posted.

[KathieKata]

Metrowon posted:

If the life boats were swung out, than it was far more serious.

Hey there, did you EVER THINK that they MIGHT have swung out the life boats to keep them from MELTING from the intense heat?? Those things aren't cheap and they were directly under the the deck that had damage.

 

I'm sure they got the boats ready because it's all part of what to do when there is enough cause for concern for the wellfair of the passengers and crew.

 

At least Sunshine426 was ON the SHIP in question! Hard to believe you could be so unsensative to her. But then it takes all kinds to make this world spin!! :rolleyes:

[CBussey64]

Are the balconies on the Star configured like those of the Golden? (Jumped over from the Carnival board but was on the Golden a few years back.) I never liked the fact that the balconies are "stair stepped." If someone should throw a cigarette from a higher balcony it could land on something flamable on a lower balcony. Means a fire could start on your balcony even if you didn't smoke. Wonder what really happened.

 

We have good memories of the Golden and would go Princess again if the price and itinerary were right.

 

 

I'm sorry to say this is exactly how a fire started in my former apt. building. Lucikly only my balcony was damaged and the one below had a little.

[CBussey64]

I agree that the uninformed will see the recent incidents as a sign that cruising isn't safe, but hopefully the more knowledgeble people will realize that accidents happen everywhere and to everything.

 

The Chile bus crash was just that, a BUS crash. That it occurred in connection with a cruise is happenstance. Similar accidents happen every day, all over the world and most have nothing to do with cruises.

 

The Princess fire is still under investigation so we don't know if anything in either the design of the ship or any action by the crew, caused the fire or exacerbated it once it started. Fires occur everywhere and more people die in fires in their own homes than have ever perished on a cruise ship.

 

Maybe because I work in the insurance industry I see things differently, but LIFE is not safe.

 

The Grand's turn WAS preventable and the Captain should be suspended or reprimanded for something like that. A sharp, high speed turn might be necessary to avoid another ship, an iceberg or some other peril, but it wasn't called for in that situation.

 

 

Thank You!!! I am printing this for my DH. The morning he heard of the fire he said we are not taking a cruise, and I said YES WE ARE, with or without him, I will. I told him he has more of a chance of a house fire or being killed on the way to or from work than he does of this happening. Well put.

[Arubalisa]

Thank You!!! I am printing this for my DH. The morning he heard of the fire he said we are not taking a cruise, and I said YES WE ARE, with or without him, I will. I told him he has more of a chance of a house fire or being killed on the way to or from work than he does of this happening. Well put.

For anyone who is now wary about taking a cruise, this is very enlightening http://crewoffice.blogspot.com/2006/03/just-how-safe-are-you-onboard-after.html

[sunshine426]

still here on the Star. If we are not on the next flight out at 4pm (charter to FLL), we think the charter will return to take us late tonight. I don't know we will see. We are making the best of the situation, and are actually having a good time. Sort of like a day at sea, without all the cruise games, and oh yes, no charges for soft drinks and last night no charges for cocktails. My two daughters are traveling with us, and they are having a great time. Have totaly charmed their cabin steward by speaking to him in spanish, and youngest (business/spanish major in college) working on her Italian. Off to read some of the other posts. Karen

[dobie]

Karen, glad you are making the best of things. Any word on when the Star will head back to FLL?? Have they started cleanup yet? Glad to hear that you are all still OK...

[Arubalisa]

still here on the Star. If we are not on the next flight out at 4pm (charter to FLL), we think the charter will return to take us late tonight. I don't know we will see. We are making the best of the situation, and are actually having a good time. Sort of like a day at sea, without all the cruise games, and oh yes, no charges for soft drinks and last night no charges for cocktails. My two daughters are traveling with us, and they are having a great time. Have totaly charmed their cabin steward by speaking to him in spanish, and youngest (business/spanish major in college) working on her Italian. Off to read some of the other posts. Karen

A cruise, is a cruise, is a cruise :) ...it is great to hear someone making the absolute best out of a less than ordinary situation :D Enjoy the rest of that vacation!

[Dave 127]

In my opinion (IMHO)

I have been on 4 Princess Cruises. Not a big time cruiser as so many out there are ( Ive met several 15 ++ cruisers on the Line). We like the Princess way of being sort of British- laid back.

We've been on the Grand ( Our favorite), the Sun ,the Sea, and the Star Princess.

The Star 2 years ago. We were on the Sea Princess in February for the 14 day cruise.

I haven't read all the banter about how it started but certainly, Smoking should be banned except in designated areas. On the Sea, I had to smoke my little Cigars in the Cigar Lounge, period. I went to the Wheelhouse Lounge and was told to extinguish it. ( OK with me).

 

On The Star , 2 years ago, was the first time I have been in a balcony stateroom, and was confounded by people smoking right next to us, so the smoke ..well you know..

Having said all this, our hearts go out to the fellow crusiers who have had their vacations cut short, but most esopecially to the dead man and the injured.

Cruising should be a pleasant time.

[seeworthy]

I am really impressed the way Princess handled this event. I think the cruise lines have learned from past customer service mistakes.

 

Seeworthy

[marlinmike]

I just got off the Grand today. We heard of the fire on the Star - bits and pieces from everyone, including workers. My wife and I also had a tour of the Navigational Bridge yesterday at 10:30 am while the ship was at sea returning to Galveston. Among the many, many systems demonstrated to us (about 12, maybe 15 people in our group) was the fire detection system. We mentioned to the officer showing us we couldn't see how a fire of this magnitude could spread so fast - he agreed. He showed us how they can "zoom in" to a specific cabin and check the fire/smoke detectors in the specific cabin one of the ladies in our group was in. He also said they routinely vacuum out these detectors and check them in a constantly rotating group and Yes, they do, from time to time, get small fires in cabins from people who fall asleep with cigarettes. That's why they have that that as one of the safety hazards on the TV's (along with putting hangars on sprinkler heads and draping clothes over lamp shades). However, these fires usually are detected and put out quickly. Two other crew members also told me they have small, quickly extinguished fires. This leads me to believe this fire got started by something other than smoking in an area not within a cabin, however, only speculation.

[KenAndJulie]

Congratulations to the crew of the Star for a job well done - the pictures looked horrific. What can you say? Commisserations to the family of the passenger that had the heart attack.

 

I was the cause of fire scare on one of our cruises when I managed to blow up our hair dryer (had it set to 110v but plugged it into the 240v circuit) and the speed of response of the crew (the purser by phone, the cabin steward and several sailors dragging a hosepipe down the hall was incredible).

 

The one quesiton that keeps coming into my mind is that the spread of this fire must have been amazing .. how did it get hold without setting off a smoke alarm? If reports of the cause are to be believed then maybe it really is time to stop smoking in staterooms ... better some minor inconvenience in having to go up on deck than risking another major incident. However, as others have said we can only wait to see what the official report says.

 

Ken

[metrowon]

Wow thanks for the "warm" comment metrowan! I am on the Star Princess, are you? I am quite aware that quite often outside news can have more information. However, remember how sensationalized many reports can be. yes this was a significant fire with serious damage. Yes, I encounted a fire door, had to turn around and use the secondary escape route, Crew were standing in each door way and instructing us. Our cabins on the Lido deck did not have any smoke smell or water damage, as the sprinklers were not set off, probably becuase those fire doors helped. I would be very interested in hearing from a fire inspector if these precuations helped. And yes, I do thank the fire crew who I did see donning air tanks and protective overalls as they prepared to go into the fire area. Anyway, we are all fine. My two daughters were on the other side of the ship, and took the main stair ways down to muster b and did encounter smoke, but still the crew were their guiding them and instructing passengers. We'll be happy to answer questions, but please do not lecture me on what I know and do not know!

I'm really glad that nearly everyone escaped this tragic event at sea, as I am a cruiser also. I'm especially and personally glad you and your loved one's escaped with no harm. Sorry about your cruise experiance. I apoligize for my comments to you, as you were there, and I was not. Metrowon

[metrowon]

Metrowon posted: Hey there, did you EVER THINK that they MIGHT have swung out the life boats to keep them from MELTING from the intense heat?? Those things aren't cheap and they were directly under the the deck that had damage.

 

I'm sure they got the boats ready because it's all part of what to do when there is enough cause for concern for the wellfair of the passengers and crew.

 

At least Sunshine426 was ON the SHIP in question! Hard to believe you could be so unsensative to her. But then it takes all kinds to make this world spin!! :rolleyes:

If a life boat were to melt, what would the heat do to a boarding escapee, trying to board the lifeboat? Did you mean insensitve, and those not so cheap lifeboats don't melt, they catch fire, they are fibreglass. So you keep the world spinning with mis-imfortation. Thank you, Metrowon

[metrowon]

As a engineer involved in fire protection, I am courious also why the sprinkler system did not contain the fire in the single room. Why is there so much damage on the outside of the ship? I am going to speculate....why not. I wonder if someone had a "gel" candle going with the balcony door open. Those that have been in balcony cabins know that when the balcony door is open and you open the inner corridor door there is a tremendous rush of air through the room. Great to feed air to the fire.

 

If someone was smoking in bed, the sprinkler should have doused it. Remember, every room has a smoke detector that should go into alarm first. It takes at least 135 deg F of heat at the sprinkler heat to cause it to blow. Its not like on TV where all the sprinkler heads go off, only the one directly affected by the heat goes off. Due to the room configuration, typically, just like a hotel room, they install a sidewall head so they don't have to run pipe out into the room. So a fire further out in the room takes longer to affect the sprinkler head.

 

I find it hard to believe a cigarette landing on the balcony deck caused the fire. I am going to speculate that there was some accelerant involved, such as spilled candle wax or "gel". Maybe the rubber deck mat caught on fire. I have been on my balcony when cigarette butts have come sailing over from above. I watched one land on the life boat cover below.

 

Will we stop cruising? No, I have a much better chance of survival on a modern cruise ship than say an airplane. We were on the SS Norway two years ago when the boiler blew up and several crew members were killed. Lucky for us we were docked and had the aid of land based fire fighters.

 

The purpose of a sprinkler is to contain the fire until outside forces can arrive. Be careful, pay attention to the exits and the muster drill.

I don't believe as stated on my earlier reponse that this situation was handled well, something went wrong, this should have been contained better. Metrowon