Celebrity Capt Removed for Drunkness

[mahdnc]

 

I found Lois's number -- we had dinner last night -- and tried calling. Already out of range. Not that I'd expect her to have the phone on hand in the dining room, but you never know.

 

I am sure that we will be reading from her very shortly!

[brigittetom]

We've met this captain. What a shame.

 

Personally, after seeing what the crew had to go thru on our last Zenith cruise, I'm surprised they aren't all drinking enough to fail a test.

[TahoeBob]

We've met this captain. What a shame.

 

I don't view it as a shame at all, capt broke the law, got fired. He got what he deserved. I am glad he got fired. I would not a drunk Cptn. What a real a$$ he must be a real jerk to put people in danger.

[brigittetom]

Bob, Actually you're right. I'm wrong. We put our trust in the Captain to do the right thing.

[bepsf]

Yes, the Captain was Petridis.

[smartlady02]

Thank you for this - I was on the Mercury Bleach Cruise 27 March - perhaps the Captain was suffering from withdrawal symptoms from the bleach fumes and needed a `fix`!

 

 

SEATTLE - A Celebrity Cruise Lines captain was dismissed FCruise line captain loses job for failing sobriety test

 

10:01 PM PDT on Friday, May 19, 2006

 

KING5.com and Associated Press

 

 

riday for failing a sobriety test druing a routine inspection, the company said in a statement.

 

KING

 

The Celebrity Cruise Line

 

 

"The captain of Celebrity Cruises Mercury was relieved of command today, and he will be dismissed form the company following his failure to pass a breath alcohol test given to him by the U.S. Coast Guard. A staff captain who is fully qualified is assuming command," a company statement said.

 

The Coast Guard's Petty Officer Shawn Eggert said inspectors administered the breathalyzer after they suspected the ship's master had been drinking.

 

The Coast Guard says this is the first time a cruise ship captain in Seattle has been arrested for drinking.

 

The captain's name and other details were not immediately available.

 

The Mercury was delayed in port for more than an hour.

 

"The captains actions are totally unacceptable. He has been stripped of his command and ordered off the ship," said Dan Hanrahan, president of Celebrity Cruises, in a statement. "Any shipboard employee, from the captain down, will be dealt with as swiftly and severely."

 

Lt. Cmdr. Rick Rodriguez of the Coast Guard said the captain was being investigated for operating a commercial vessel under the influence of alcohol, which is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison.

 

Federal law considers someone operating a vessel on the waters of the United States legally intoxicated if his blood alcohol concentration level exceeds .040.

 

Celebrity Cruises sails weekly during spring and summer from Seattle to Alaska from the Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal at Pier 66, where the ship was moored during the incident.

[smartlady02]

I have done a lot of sailing (yacht) and in so doing have made many, many crossings of the English Channel (the busiest seaway in the world) keeping a careful watch.

The only time I have ever had a collision was on my Med. cruise when the Van Gogh collided with a fully-laden oil-tanker coming out of Gibraltar!!! Made a hole in the bow of the Van Gogh that a double-decker bus could park in ... fortunately the tanker was not holed ...

It is well-known that tankers and the like work on way-point navigation and usually leave the Chinese cook on watch (!) - hence the need for all other vessels to be alert and in full control at all times.

[turtlemichael]

I don't view it as a shame at all, capt broke the law, got fired. He got what he deserved. I am glad he got fired. I would not a drunk Cptn. What a real a$$ he must be a real jerk to put people in danger.

 

I agree that the man appears to have done something extremely serious and should have been removed instantly. If he is charged and found guilty, he will possibly be jailed. His career is in tatters.

 

But how about a bit of normal human compassion for the guy? Maybe he was told by a doctor he had a terminal illness that day, maybe his wife is leaving him maybe he had a inexcusable boozy lunch. None of us know. None of these would go anyway to excusing him but might explain it. At this point I have sympathy for the guy because of the situation he has placed himself in but I believe his actions, if as stated, need to be severely punished. I won't resort to calling him a a$$ or a jerk because that would only demean me. Sorry to be a wishy, washy liberal. :rolleyes:

[HumanCookie]

Here's a video report of the incident. Just click the video link "Cruise Ship Captain Suspected of Drinking"

 

http://www.komotv.com/stories/43535.htm

[DeltaOne]

I don't think it is uncommon for anyone who works on a cruise ship to drink every day. How do you think they get through a 70 hour 7 day a week work schedule.

 

The question would be was he at the helm when he was pulled off and tested?

Just a guess, but I don't think the captain ever "drives" the ship, that's the job of the officers on duty. (They work four hour shifts.)

 

Sure, if something tricky or dangerous was going on...the captain would be on the bridge to supervise. Under normal circumstances I'll wager a guess the captain never "drives" the ship.

[lysolqn]

The master of the vessel is responsible for the safety and well-being of all passengers and crew, not to mention a multi-million dollar cruiseship that is a valuable asset of the company by which he is employed. It appears he made a serious error in judgment (his reason for doing so is of no value) and violated the trust of those to whom he was respsonsible. It's no different than an intoxicated pilot entering the cockpit, even if his co-pilot does the actual flying. I commend X for dismissing him.

[Iamboatman]

The captain probably is not "driving the boat" from the manual standpoint (though sometimes he will), but he is in charge..."in command".

 

Technically, there is a difference from when he is "in command" and when he hands command over to another officer. So, when he is "off duty" (possibly entertaining or just in his cabin) the rules are different. BUT under no circumstances may a captain be truly over the limit...because if there is a crisis, he must take command.

 

Until everything is known I think it would be wrong to attack or speculate. It is a pretty serious situation and getting it right would be more responsible than "getting him".

[LovetheSea]

Does anyone know for sure WHO was the Captain was?

[mahdnc]

The captain probably is not "driving the boat" from the manual standpoint (though sometimes he will), but he is in charge..."in command".

 

 

For example, a harbor pilot is hired to guide the ship into and out of port.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

This incident makes one wonder how frequent an occurrence it is for a captain to be impaired on board. First, how often was this particular captain impaired on ship and how often are other cruise ship captains impaired?

 

Another question: the coast guard "caught" this captain, but didn't any crew members notice his condition? If so, would they have turned him in or is that career suicide to turn in the captian because you think he is impaired? Or is it career suicide NOT to turn him in or exactly what are the shipboard politics and protocols in such situations?

 

It would make a great disaster movie. I see Harrison Ford as the impaired Captain. Leonardo de Caprio as the bravely independent officer who seizes control of the ship (In high seas) and orders the Cap to the brig. While other crew members fight for power and take sides and Kurt Russle, a billionaire industrailist who occupies the Royal Suite, gets involved.

[cruiselover20]

Why are so many of you being soft on this guy. He broke the law, he was drunk, and he is the one that is responsible for the lives of all passengers and crew onboard. Shame on him.

 

Are you that soft on drunk drivers? That is exactly what he was!

 

Thank goodness that the Coast Guard does their job, and I hope he goes to jail.

[excitedofharpenden]

I agree that the man appears to have done something extremely serious and should have been removed instantly. If he is charged and found guilty, he will possibly be jailed. His career is in tatters.

 

But how about a bit of normal human compassion for the guy? Maybe he was told by a doctor he had a terminal illness that day, maybe his wife is leaving him maybe he had a inexcusable boozy lunch. None of us know. None of these would go anyway to excusing him but might explain it. At this point I have sympathy for the guy because of the situation he has placed himself in but I believe his actions, if as stated, need to be severely punished. I won't resort to calling him a a$$ or a jerk because that would only demean me. Sorry to be a wishy, washy liberal. :rolleyes:

I agree with you Michael. Whilst one side of me says "you messed up and got what you deserved", the benevolent side of me says "I feel sorry for you and your family, because you have stuffed up your working life and this will affect you and those around you for a long time". Now I'm not sure if I would feel the same benevolence for a drunk driver who killed or injured a member of my family. As far as the ex-Captain of Mercury goes, that is just what he should be. That much I am sure of.

 

Phil

[TahoeBob]

I agree that the man appears to have done something extremely serious and should have been removed instantly. If he is charged and found guilty, he will possibly be jailed. His career is in tatters.

 

But how about a bit of normal human compassion for the guy? Maybe he was told by a doctor he had a terminal illness that day, maybe his wife is leaving him maybe he had a inexcusable boozy lunch. None of us know. None of these would go anyway to excusing him but might explain it. At this point I have sympathy for the guy because of the situation he has placed himself in but I believe his actions, if as stated, need to be severely punished. I won't resort to calling him a a$$ or a jerk because that would only demean me. Sorry to be a wishy, washy liberal. :rolleyes:

Being a Liberal has nothing to do with this. Should we feel sorry for a drunk driver who has killed someone. The reason for his drinking are not my concern. any one of your reasons could be true, but the fact of the matter is he was drunk by law and endangered thousands of lives. Do you feel sorry for the airline pilots who was arrested drunk before takeoff. I would like to talk to my friend Larry Chason about this subject because I am shure he would have some strong views about it, but the only problem is he was killed by a drunk driver. Should I feel sorry for the drunk driver who did say in court the reason he was drunk was because he had a big fight with his wife.

 

Like I said this has nothing to do with a being a Liberal because I am a liberal, it has everything to do with the cptns actions. I stick with my comments.

[editor@cruisecritic]

Thanks to all of you who alerted me (news@cruisecritic.com) -- our news item is up and we'll follow up Monday with what happens in court.

We have a pretty good idea who the captain was/is (that was delicate) -- it's either one or the other (and one was mentioned on the thread). But we can't identify him without confirmation.

Best,

Carolyn Spencer Brown

Editor

Cruise Critic

 

PS Here's the link: http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=1663

[Ocean Boy]

I don't think it is uncommon for anyone who works on a cruise ship to drink every day. How do you think they get through a 70 hour 7 day a week work schedule.

The next time you go see your physician cut him some slack if he happens to walk into the room plastered. How else could he get through a 70 hour work week?:rolleyes:

[TPKeller]

It's quite interesting to read the wide range of reaction to the allegation that a man in charge of thousands of people and millions of dollars impaired himself beyond the capacity to do his job.

 

It is a sad story. Not because of sympathy for his punishment and the end of his career, but because this fellow human being has allowed drug abuse to ruin his life.

 

I really have a hard time understanding why some elements of society tend to brush this sort of thing under the rug. The only thing I can come up with is that many people believe "it won't affect me". I'm certainly not a big partyer, but on some occasions when I have been around social drinking, I have been utterly amazed that there is more concern with getting caught driving than with keeping the impaired from driving in the first place!

 

I must confess that I used to have a more laissez faire attitude, until one New Years Eve while driving home, I was nearly T-Boned by some driver coming out of a subdivision onto the main road. He shot straight across and went nose first into the ditch. I slowed, saw he was unhurt, and also that his car was well stuck and not going anywhere, and "not wanting to get involved", I continued home. To this day I feel guilty for not getting involved. Maybe it's the Spiderman complex, but there is a small fear in the back of my mind that some day that person, whoever they were, may return to hurt, kill or maim one of my friends or loved ones. And how selfish is that? Undoubtedly, left unchecked, that kind of a person will inevitably hurt, kill or maim someone's loved one.

 

So yes, it is a sad thing. But not that he got caught or punished. Of all the possible scenarios, that is probably the best thing that could have happened to him.

 

Theron

[idssms]

Just got off the Mercury on Friday and had dinner with Captain Petridis on the first formal night. We did have wine at the captains table and it was a fun time. I am sad too see him relieved of his duties since he was a good captain. Maybe in fact as mentioned in the post by Ms Brown it wasnt this Captain.

 

Guess we will find out soon enough. Looks like no more social drinking for cruise personnel.

 

Don

[hollym]

the Exxon Valdez?:mad:

[cruiselover20]

Just got off the Mercury on Friday and had dinner with Captain Petridis on the first formal night. We did have wine at the captains table and it was a fun time. I am sad too see him relieved of his duties since he was a good captain. Maybe in fact as mentioned in the post by Ms Brown it wasnt this Captain.

 

Guess we will find out soon enough. Looks like no more social drinking for cruise personnel.

 

Don

 

"good captains" do not endanger their passengers, and a social drink is not going to put your blood level that high.

 

There are rules........so he was a great guy, but I am still in favor of the captains that do their job, and are not trying to run a popularity contest.

 

Maybe Celebrity got him cheap!

[excitedofharpenden]

Just got off the Mercury on Friday and had dinner with Captain Petridis on the first formal night. We did have wine at the captains table and it was a fun time. I am sad too see him relieved of his duties since he was a good captain. Maybe in fact as mentioned in the post by Ms Brown it wasnt this Captain.

 

Guess we will find out soon enough. Looks like no more social drinking for cruise personnel.

 

Don

Well Don, I'm glad to hear it was first formal and you weren't on a binge with him on the last evening;)

 

Phil