First Person Account of the fire on the Star

[Basfreeman]

This is not speculation as to the cause of the fire; rather, I want to take the opportunity to tap the knowlege base of those assembled here to ask a question. How safe are the personal oxygen bottles/containers that a number of pax are required to travel with? Every time I see them in use, I wonder if they meet any type of fire safety standards.

[joew]

All tragic.....but not the fault of the Ships or Cruise Lines

 

"- Grand "turn" last month A few cuts....and broken LLardo statues...totally overblown incident"

 

Lets get one thing corrected. The Grand Turn on the Grand Princess was the fault of the crew member at the helm. They turned the ship too fast causing a major tilt and many injuries. If this person had been on board they would not have made this statement. It was not an "overblown" incident to the people who got a present from the ships doctor - a nice blue cast on their arm, it is not fun to watch a TV come flying at you in your stateroom, it was not "overblown" to watch an older passenger sitting in a chair, all of a sudden on her back as the chair fell backwards and of course it was not fun to watch a second person being moved to the Coast Guard Cutter, who had been OK prior to the list.

 

Princess has been doing all it can to hide this incident, to make believe it never happened or was minor, but to those of use who were on board we know it happened and we know of the negligence of the bridge.

[where next?]

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.

 

 

Thanks for the info Mama but I still don't think they are worth the risk to me or my fellow passengers. As a person without a sense of smell, I wouldn't know one was a problem until I actually saw smoke. That makes me more afraid of anything that can cause a fire. I definately won't wake up because I smell smoke because I'll never smell it! (A bit of a problem for me..)

 

I did actually call Glade when I heard of the danger and I didn't feel much better after getting the canned corporate response. I threw all of mine away and they aren't that cheap!

 

I read the website you passed along and it really doesn't give me reason to to buy them again - especially this part:

 

:Since consumers are leery of trusting safety information put out by the same companies that sell the products in question, we contacted the Los Angeles Fire Department and spoke to arson investigators there about their experience with fires caused by plug-in air fresheners. Not only did none of them recall such a case from personal experience, but a search of their records for the last twenty years failed to turn up a single incidence of a structure fire resulting in damage exceeding $25,000 caused by a plug-in air freshener. So we feel pretty safe in saying that whatever fire danger plug-in air fresheners might pose, it's an extremely small one.

 

The phrases no damage "exceeding 25,000" ,the fact that they feel "pretty safe" that the damage plug ins pose is "extremely small one" just is not good enough for me. Expecially not out in the ocean.

 

This is just my opinion though. I mentioned it because we've been talking about fire safety and my plug-in was an item I removed from my "cruise packing list" because of that. I felt it was unfair to bring since I had heard of the potential danger.

 

We sail the Coral Princess this April and I am thinking about taking my battery operated fire alarm when we're sleeping at night!

 

Bobbie

[HurricaneSally]

My friend's house burned to the ground because of a glade plug-in in the kitchen. They were at work at the time.

[snedecor]

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.

 

How did you arrange a Nav. Bridge tour? I was told by some insiders that it's almost impossible to get. As an engineer, I'd LOVE to see either the bridge or the engine room!

 

(sorry for the post hijack, Marlinmike has no contact info in his profile)

 

Snedecor (just off Grand as well)

[susiesan]

Why don't the ships have non-smoking cabins like hotels ?- My dad had a cabin on NCL one time that also reeked of smoke and the ship was full- they tried all their cleaning machines but it still really smelled. It can really put a damper on a trip...............

 

I will be taking my first Oceania cruise in June and their policy is no smoking in the cabins or on the balconies at all. Just a small area up on top outside. Of course, there will always be people who violate the rules. But if you are caught violating Oceania's policy they put you off at the next port. Other passengers even turn in the smokers. Works for me. The former Renaissance ships were 100% smoke free.

[cruzincurt]

Typically, personal oxygen bottles are safe, except if the person using the oxygen decides to smoke at the same time. I don't know what pressure they are filled at but one danger of any bottled gas is it tipping over and the valve snapping off. Then they become a rocket.

 

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has requirements for alarm devices in hotel rooms. They specify a strobe light that has enough intensity of light that it is supposed to be able to wake someone who is sleeping. I assume the systems on the ship are designed to meet the NFPA or European standards.

 

Another good reason not to wear earplugs when sleeping on a ship.

[Bermudalou]

Each stateroom contains fire/smoke alarms & sprinklers. Why didn't sprinkler system contain fire to single cabin?

[Fireman239]

This is all well and good but, I’m a Lieutenant Commander of special marine operations for a county fire department covering some of the west coast of Florida and I have to say that 98% of all fires, on ships, are held in check or extinguished by sprinklers( if working). So lets see what the NTSB has to say. Now that said let me tell you a sad and stupid true story; I was on a cruise last October and the fire alarm went off at 02:00 hours and do you know that all of two passengers went to there muster station, myself and a very nice man in his 90’s. So who’ at fault and who’s the fools…. Just thought I’d add my two cents,,,, Fitzgerald

[thebiga001]

I feel kind of sorry for the cruise lines... trying to babysit thousands of people, many of whom insist on acting like idiots by getting way too drunk. If people get that looped, you're going to have some accidents... people falling overboard, getting thrown overboard, leaving cigarettes burning, being abducted, etc.

Then when it happens, it's made out like it's the cruise line's fault.

Just my 2 cents.

[ssbeagle]

My heartfelt sympathy to the family of Mr. Liffger(?) on his passing and to the passengers who suffered from the effects of the Star fire. Accidents can and do happen at sea and many can be avoided if the rules are followed. We can only hope that all from the fateful cruise will not suffer any ill effects from this.

 

We are booked for the Star Apr 9th cruise and are waiting patiently to hear what Princess will be doing about it. We are also booked for Oct 21st for the Star and are hoping it will be back in service by then. The fire will not change my mind about cruising. We love it and will continue to do so. We were on a ship once that had a similar incident to the Grand and it was frightening at the time. We were in Alaska when the ship suddenly listed hard enough to cause everything in the bars to go crashing to the deck and chairs overturned. People rushed to the other side as if that would turn the ship back upright. It's not a fun thing. But, again, we still cruise. This would have been our 20th with Princess and second on the Star. Princess is really working hard to take care of their passengers.

[JLC@SD]

Each stateroom contains fire/smoke alarms & sprinklers. Why didn't sprinkler system contain fire to single cabin?

There are no sprinklers on the balconies, which is where the fire started and where a majority of the damage occurred. Once the fire breached the cabin doors, and the cabin started to burn, the interior sprinklers probably went off inside the cabin.

[judynorth]

I just talked to my TA today about another matter and learned that she had 2 clients on the Star. They were actually deployed in a lifeboat and spent some time floating on the sea until things stabalized enough to bring them back onboard. This is the first that I heard of lifeboats actually being deployed.

[LARGIN]

I think people being in a lifeboat is just another rumor. :rolleyes:

[judynorth]

I think people being in a lifeboat is just another rumor. :rolleyes:

 

And, pray tell, why would these people lie? They are friends of the TA so this was not a 2nd or 3rd hand report. They were there (in the lifeboat)! You were not!

[LARGIN]

because if that would have happened, it would have been front page news and on all of the news networks. You do not just put a few passengers in a lifeboat. The whole muster station would have been on them which means 100's. And if that happened you betcha that everyone on the ship would have heard about it.

[judynorth]

because if that would have happened, it would have been front page news and on all of the news networks. You do not just put a few passengers in a lifeboat. The whole muster station would have been on them which means 100's. And if that happened you betcha that everyone on the ship would have heard about it.

 

There are lots of things that happened during the emergency that haven't made the news and probably never will. Many of the things reported by the passengers sound improbable but I believe them because the people were there and were reporting from first hand experience. All I can say is that my TA is a reputable person and is not in the habit of lying or even sensationalizing things. I don't care whether you believe her or not. That is your choice but you shouldn't accuse her (or me) of lying for the sensationalism that it will create. Enough!

[LARGIN]

Never said you were lying.. Just said it was probably another rumor.

[Ethel5]

If lifeboats were deployed, we would have heard about it on all the news networks - over and over and over again. Other passengers would have also mentioned it. Plus why would the ship only put a "few" people in a life boat? Can you imagine the pandemonium that would have caused?

[bdjam]

There are lots of things that happened during the emergency that haven't made the news and probably never will. Many of the things reported by the passengers sound improbable but I believe them because the people were there and were reporting from first hand experience. All I can say is that my TA is a reputable person and is not in the habit of lying or even sensationalizing things. I don't care whether you believe her or not. That is your choice but you shouldn't accuse her (or me) of lying for the sensationalism that it will create. Enough!

I believe you when you say that your Travel Agent is reputable and doesn’t sensationalize things…but I wonder about her clients. I agree with Largin (and right – I normally do) that it sounds like rumor. If any of the survival craft were deployed they would have been filled to capacity – otherwise they wouldn’t have been able to get all of the passengers off the ship if with what was left. Perhaps your TA’s clients were watching Titanic (where the boats were deployed half full) in Jamaica – I heard it was being broadcast there. No one else who has posted here about the incident – who was there – has mentioned anything about survival craft being deployed.

Lets get one thing corrected. The Grand Turn on the Grand Princess was the fault of the crew member at the helm.

I thought we were over this one? I hardly think the two incidents compare in severity and in respect to those who have made it through the Star Princess incident, the Grand Princess emergency turn should be put aside.

[LadyRx]

I must agree with LARGIN, I was on the ship and there was plenty of talking among the passengers. No mention whatsoever about anyone being placed in lifeboats.

[Vippie]

I posted this on another thread ... I was on the CB March 4-11, with a port side cabin almost all the way back. When we first arrived in our room, our wood railing had just been varnished, and there was a "wet paint" sign on it. There were crew members varnishing wood all over the ship, all week.

 

About 2-3 days into the cruise I was on the balcony (yes, smoking) and I looked down to a balcony one deck below and to my left. There was an open can of varnish on that balcony, in the late afternoon (on Dolphin deck). I remember thinking the cabin must be unoccupied, but still thought it was weird it was there. I also remember thinking that I would be VERY CAREFUL with my cigarette and instead of ashtrays I used empty soda cans with liquid in them.

 

Like everyone else I'm very curious to learn what the cause was, if they can determine it.

[k.m.]

Thanks to those who have taken the time to recount their stories. We are booked on the CB for Sept. 30 and this fire and the first hand pax who have taken the time to post about it have reassured me about the safety of cruising. My heart goes out to all the people who have been traumatized by this accident. I still believe cruising is one of the safest vacations a person can take.

If there is anyone out there with experience as a firefighter I would be interested in knowing how many fires they have seen that were caused by smokers. Having been in a house fire as a small child, one caused by a smoker, I know the terror and confusion that occurs when trying to escape. I could be wrong but I thought the U.S. prosecuted those who cause forest fires even by accident if they are caught. If this fire turns out to be caused by a smoker, I hope they find out who it was and prosecute! I do suspect that the chances of actually discovering the culprit if it was a person are remote...

[cusyl]

Could it be? On one of my many cruises prior to the practice drill they were looking for volunteers to go into the lifeboat. This was only a drill, not the real thing.

[cruzincurt]

Need to correct my previous post. Sprinklers (with a red bulb) are set to go off at 155 deg F, not 135 I stated earlier. My understanding is that when a smoke detector goes off in a cabin, they send someone to investigate.

 

On the Norway, the day the boiler blew up, people were leaving their muster stations to get that last breakfast from the Lido.