Conquest Captain Boots Man off Ship for Starting A Protest !!!03/16/08 Cruise

[NotAPirate]

Sure. Actually, the guy who originated this "protest" made quick anouncement via microphone on the deck. The main point I got for myself was that ship officials do not want to talk to passengers, so if we collect signatures then at least we can be heard. There was no petition, at least initially.

Ship officials don't want to talk to passengers? Ummm, 'scuse me, but all the staff I've encountered on 8+ cruises have been very reachable and forthcoming with appropriate information. That PA system works wonders, too. But then being part of a mob would be SOOO much more appealing than acting like an adult and speaking to a staffer... :rolleyes:

 

This is 1st (and probably last - not my type of vacation) cruise I had, so to me the main point was to visit new places. I DO understand that health and life of single person matters much more than vacation objectives of 3000 people. BUT, at the same time I was SURPRISED that such a predictable situation (it is very possible with 3000 passangers + 1000 crew on the ship) handled in such inefficient manner. My point is that the Carnival, as a company should be responsible for not delivering the service that we paid for. Of course, they might be covered by different contractual conditions and this is what some people here say. This is why they have a freedom and flexibility for situations resolution. Well, I DO believe there are more efficient ways to handle this (e.g. get helicopter from Jamaika, Mexico, Kayman Islands...). They picked the cheapest (for them) solution regardless of all incovenience for the passengers. I just cannot agree with it in principal, so this is why I put my signature there.

Inefficient? How so? The Captain announced an unforseen delay due to a medical emergency and followed seabourne and Carnival procedure to accomodate an airlift with the US Coast Guard. He was more than likely directed to sail to a specific position in the Gulf and maintain that until the person was picked up. Jamaica, Grand Cayman or Mexico were either out of that range -OR- didn't have the available medical facilities the person required. YOU don't know that. All you know is your vacation was interrupted and some loudmouth with a similar bend had the audacity to make noise, so you became a lemming.

 

Do you realise how LARGE the Conquest is, how long it takes to reach cruising speed -OR- how long it takes to slow down enough to safely turn about without causing a list to one side or the other? It's 110,000 tons, it doesn't stop on a dime (err... sand dollar?). It takes almost 1.75 MILES to slow down from its cruising speed to a manageable turn speed... then it takes over 2 HOURS to get back to that cruise speed. Then factor in the added fuel use, lost revenue from excursions in Montego Bay, and the OBC given to mitigate some of the loss... yeah, that was the CHEAPER alternative.

 

:rolleyes:

[trock]

Hey trock, I like your Audrey Hepburn avatar. :) I tried to give myself a different avatar, but am just too computer illiterate to do it. The pictures I tried were all too big.

 

Thank you

I love her!

 

I had to try a couple of times because i guess some of the ones i tried to use were too big..

Trial and error!

keep trying!!:o :D

[LemurCat]

Im surprised you dont sue the passenger who got sick for the inconvenience of ruining YOUR vacation, I mean really how could they have done something so inconsiderate.:rolleyes: Should have read your contract before you purchased a cruise.

 

 

Fantastic ... let's hope that seed of an idea doesn't take root in this guy's brain ....

[deborahjo]

I as many here have been on ships where med evac had to take place. Was I mad. No. Yes our time in Belieze was cut short but my thoughts were with the person being taken off the ship. Were they going to be okay, was their family being taken care of. That is where my thoughts were.

 

We did not get any compensation nor did I expect it. Things happen. You are living in a small city where anything can happen. I am sorry you feel like you were inconviencened but you need to remember this the next time this happens it could be you or a member of your family that is "inconvienceing? a ship load of pax".

[Gecko7]

Ship officials don't want to talk to passengers? Ummm, 'scuse me, but all the staff I've encountered on 8+ cruises have been very reachable and forthcoming with appropriate information. That PA system works wonders, too. But then being part of a mob would be SOOO much more appealing than acting like an adult and speaking to a staffer... :rolleyes:

 

 

Inefficient? How so? The Captain announced an unforseen delay due to a medical emergency and followed seabourne and Carnival procedure to accomodate an airlift with the US Coast Guard. He was more than likely directed to sail to a specific position in the Gulf and maintain that until the person was picked up. Jamaica, Grand Cayman or Mexico were either out of that range -OR- didn't have the available medical facilities the person required. YOU don't know that. All you know is your vacation was interrupted and some loudmouth with a similar bend had the audacity to make noise, so you became a lemming.

 

Do you realise how LARGE the Conquest is, how long it takes to reach cruising speed -OR- how long it takes to slow down enough to safely turn about without causing a list to one side or the other? It's 110,000 tons, it doesn't stop on a dime (err... sand dollar?). It takes almost 1.75 MILES to slow down from its cruising speed to a manageable turn speed... then it takes over 2 HOURS to get back to that cruise speed. Then factor in the added fuel use, lost revenue from excursions in Montego Bay, and the OBC given to mitigate some of the loss... yeah, that was the CHEAPER alternative.

 

:rolleyes:

 

Well said!:)

 

Gecko7:D

[obx_fintoo]

To the Folks who are letting RCruise2 get them riled, just want to point out:

 

- they just joined under this name

- they have 2 posts - to this thread only

 

Do you really think they just happened to find this site and this thread about their cruise? How convenient!

 

Troll or CC member who's too embarrassed that they signed a silly petition to use their regular moniker?:rolleyes:

[okgirl]

it "definitely" happened because you heard it in Cozumel???????

 

haven't any of you ever heard the Jerry Penacoli story???? Millions of people know someone "who was in the ER" when he went in and there "absolutely WAS a gerbil...."

 

In Oklahoma the Jerry Penacoli story is about a well known furnature store owner and as you said someone who knows someone who was there and "ABSOLUTELY WAS A GERBIL......." :p

 

I just love urban legends :rolleyes:

[RCruise2]

Inefficient? How so? The Captain announced an unforseen delay due to a medical emergency and followed seabourne and Carnival procedure to accomodate an airlift with the US Coast Guard. He was more than likely directed to sail to a specific position in the Gulf and maintain that until the person was picked up. Jamaica, Grand Cayman or Mexico were either out of that range -OR- didn't have the available medical facilities the person required. YOU don't know that. All you know is your vacation was interrupted and some loudmouth with a similar bend had the audacity to make noise, so you became a lemming.

 

Hmmm... I think that questioning the situation doesn't seem like being a lemming vs Blindly accepting everything just because it is written in contract.

 

Do you realise how LARGE the Conquest is, how long it takes to reach cruising speed -OR- how long it takes to slow down enough to safely turn about without causing a list to one side or the other? It's 110,000 tons, it doesn't stop on a dime (err... sand dollar?). It takes almost 1.75 MILES to slow down from its cruising speed to a manageable turn speed... then it takes over 2 HOURS to get back to that cruise speed. Then factor in the added fuel use, lost revenue from excursions in Montego Bay, and the OBC given to mitigate some of the loss... yeah, that was the CHEAPER alternative.

:rolleyes:

 

You sound like a crew from the ship...

 

Again, let's put off emotions and look at it from technical standpoint. With 4000 people on board that was EXPECTED event and should be handled to not compromise the main objective of the trip, which Carnival failed to do, because they just have poor planning for such type of events and do not want to invest into it. Don't speculate that there are no medical facilities or something in other locations. How people leave there? Don't be impressed with great decision to go back to US coast line. This only demonstrates how cheap they are. If they wanted to take care of people they would keep helicopter on the ship, have contracts with medical facilities in surrounding countries/destinations etc. to get ready to address the situation in more efficient manner. "Efficient" here means not just without compromising people's vacations, but to be able to reach necessary facilities quicker.

 

Good luck with your future trips. I hope my participation in this discussion brought some alternative points.

[okgirl]

Wow, I really thought it was a US ship and that was the law.

 

I don't remember if the Conquest is Bahamian or Panamainian registry, but I think that if a ship has US registry it has to employ all US citizens and adhear to our minimum wage standards and stuff like that.

 

Plus because of the Passenger Services Vessel Act?? I think that's the one that's being debated in congress right now because it says something about a non-US flagged ship cannot travel directly between 2 US ports without going to a foreign port 1st. I think it was an old law to protect the commercial shipping industry from foreign competition. But NCL who operates under a US flag in Hawaii is now complaining and trying to get the law changed to protect their Hawaian market and require other ships to stay 48 hours in the foreign port.

 

There is a whole PSVA thread.

 

As to this subject, I'm sure the Captain has the welfare of the passenger's in mind 1st and then I believe there is an element of fiscal responsibility that is given consideration after the emergency is resolved.

[big_duck]

I hope my participation in this discussion brought some alternative points.

 

Alternative - funny way to spell moronic.

 

Do you have any idea what it takes to keep a helicopter on a ship? First there is landing deck and hangar space ... there goes the aft pool and the supper club. Then you need not only flight crew but maintenance/launch personnel, plus space to store fuel, and spares.

 

Since the primary purpose of this helicopter you are also going to need qualified flight EMTs.

 

Now you have to keep the flight crew current, that means daily flights which would involve turning the ship "into the wind" which would cause delays.

 

All this, just in case there is medical emergency that requires air evac?

 

This is about the dumbest thing I've ever heard. :rolleyes:

[NotAPirate]

Hmmm... I think that questioning the situation doesn't seem like being a lemming vs Blindly accepting everything just because it is written in contract.

No, asking POLITELY one of the staff members why the need to turn about would not be like a lemming. Just signing some rabblerouser's petition because you think the "principal" of the situation is the compay's inefficiency is not.

 

You sound like a crew from the ship...

 

Again, let's put off emotions and look at it from technical standpoint. With 4000 people on board that was EXPECTED event and should be handled to not compromise the main objective of the trip, which Carnival failed to do, because they just have poor planning for such type of events and do not want to invest into it. Don't speculate that there are no medical facilities or something in other locations. How people leave there? Don't be impressed with great decision to go back to US coast line. This only demonstrates how cheap they are. If they wanted to take care of people they would keep helicopter on the ship, have contracts with medical facilities in surrounding countries/destinations etc. to get ready to address the situation in more efficient manner. "Efficient" here means not just without compromising people's vacations, but to be able to reach necessary facilities quicker.

 

Good luck with your future trips. I hope my participation in this discussion brought some alternative points.

No, I'm not a crew member, just ex-military with family members who are past or current Navy -AND- someone who's taken interest in the huge ships we cruise on. I ask questions, I speak candidly with those "crew members." I learn.

 

Your argument counters itself. You state '"Efficient" here means not just without compromising people's vacations, but to be able to reach necessary facilities quicker.'... how do YOU know this was not the most efficient option open to the captain? How do YOU know other options weren't considered but had to be abandoned due to the severity of the person's needs? You don't, you just want to get on here anonymously and whine because you missed a port. And if any other of a thousand different things had occured to keep you from that port (port strike, storm, over-booking of port facilities by Port Authority, mechanical failure of the propulsion system on the ship, etc, ad nauseum, ...), you'd be here defending your lemminghood.

 

Fact remains: captain made a decision based on the options at hand, Carnival extended what they could to fix the issue at the time, a person got the medical attention they needed, YOU got to cruise for 7 days on the Conquest on VACATION. You missed Jamaica... big loss. You're right, you shouldn't cruise, take flights, spend more money out of pocket and see where you stand when your flight is cancelled or the resort closes for some reason or another. See you on the "Resort Critic" forums...

 

:cool:

[LambKnuckles]

WOW!!! I can't believe ANYONE would complain about a medical emergency... I'm sorry... life, health, safety are NUMERO UNO!!!

You still have a cruise, you still have time with those you came on board, you still have your health...

We missed a port and everyone was locked on board the Ecstasy during Mardi Gras in Galveston... I could have complained... I lost Progreso... BUT hey... I had a BLAST!!!

[Skeeter1602]

Hmmm... I think that questioning the situation doesn't seem like being a lemming vs Blindly accepting everything just because it is written in contract.

 

 

 

You sound like a crew from the ship...

 

Again, let's put off emotions and look at it from technical standpoint. With 4000 people on board that was EXPECTED event and should be handled to not compromise the main objective of the trip, which Carnival failed to do, because they just have poor planning for such type of events and do not want to invest into it. Don't speculate that there are no medical facilities or something in other locations. How people leave there? Don't be impressed with great decision to go back to US coast line. This only demonstrates how cheap they are. If they wanted to take care of people they would keep helicopter on the ship, have contracts with medical facilities in surrounding countries/destinations etc. to get ready to address the situation in more efficient manner. "Efficient" here means not just without compromising people's vacations, but to be able to reach necessary facilities quicker.

 

Good luck with your future trips. I hope my participation in this discussion brought some alternative points.

 

Helicopters have a very short range, and I am sure the ship had to turn around to close that fuel window gap. After that person was airlifted they would need to stay "On station" till the helicopter passed the point of no return (closer to land than the ship) before they could proceed to a destination. The length of time this took put them out of their port of call window to Montego Bay.

 

This was not due to the inefficiency of Carnival or the crew. This is how it is done regardless of cruise line!

 

You also posted something about getting a copter from some other country? >LOL> If it was you that were in a potential life threat would you want to be flown back to the states, or some other ill equipped country because it might inconvenience some inconsiderate passengers?

 

I am sorry you are trying to justify signing that stupid petition, but blaming a crew for doing something by the book is just wrong.

 

Thanks for your different "Perspective" but it is only your opinion based on assumptions, not a true knowledge of how things work on the sea.

[karenh1127]

Oh yes, if I require emergency surgery please take me to Jamaica not the USA! Geez.....!!! I am still working on my review of this cruise but let me just say that the staff were incredible! One of my sons has OCD and was a wreck the whole time worrying we were going to flip, sink, etc. Every carnival staff he asked questions to took the time to explain things to him such as the stabilizers, steering around any bad weather, etc. And I mean everyone from the matri d to the coffee shop lady to several ranking officers. Anyone he asked. I feel certain should he have came across the captain, he too would have taken time to assure him. The staff was great! We are already planning another cruise on this same ship!

[Luckysll]

This is 1st (and probably last - not my type of vacation) cruise I had,

 

 

May I say, on behalf of the people who really DO want to cruise.....thank you!

[cuccicruisers]

We woke up one morning...ready to tender off the ship in Belize. I think we were on the Sensation. We could see land from our window. Then we heard the announcement...could not tender in due to the conditions. We were upset sure....but as seasoned cruisers we go with the flow. Took the credit they gave us...ordered some drinks and relaxed. What are you going to do?

 

If you cruise....like the ship. There is always a chance you will not get off where you expect. Especially hurricane season. I have friends who were diverted from several ports during Wilma and complained non-stop. Are you kidding?

 

We have also traveled w/ NCL...missed ports. One for a medical emergency and one due to weather conditions and guess what? Nada...nothing...just a we're sorry.

[ash4020]

Just ignore RCruise2. Simply ignorant. Just pray he never has to be air evac from anywhere. He would probably be mad they took to long to get there. :rolleyes:

[Skeeter1602]

We woke up one morning...ready to tender off the ship in Belize. I think we were on the Sensation. We could see land from our window. Then we heard the announcement...could not tender in due to the conditions. We were upset sure....but as seasoned cruisers we go with the flow. Took the credit they gave us...ordered some drinks and relaxed. What are you going to do?

 

If you cruise....like the ship. There is always a chance you will not get off where you expect. Especially hurricane season. I have friends who were diverted from several ports during Wilma and complained non-stop. Are you kidding?

 

We have also traveled w/ NCL...missed ports. One for a medical emergency and one due to weather conditions and guess what? Nada...nothing...just a we're sorry.

 

 

I like your quote " If you cruise....like the ship. There is always a chance you will not get off where you expect. "

 

I would take a 7 day all sea cruise in a heartbeat!! There is so much going on, and so much to do on the ship you would always have fun.

 

It sure beats workin'!!!!!;)

[Goofyisme]

Surprised RCruise2 was able to find his way to the ship. Has to be a troll.

[chadinennistx]

i was on that cruise and signed the petition.

There are a few points I would like to make...

- There are no objections to captain decision to change the course of the ship to address critical health situation of the passenger/crew, IF that was the only option.

- There are different types of people: somebody likes to stay on the ship, but for someone the primary objective is to visit new places, so no doubts that skipping Jamaica is a BIG impact on vacation plans for those people from the secind group

- Analyzing the situation, you can see that Carnival as a company does not have efficient way or did not want to proceed with more efficient ways to address such situations without impacting the people's vacation. There are long reach helicopters they could use to pick up somebody from the ship without changing the course... but i guess they picked cheaper solution.

- All this demonstrates that taking a cruise is really taking a chance: you just cannot rely on efficient handling of situation by Carnival as a company.

- Signing this petition,.. money was a secondary matter for me; there is a matter of principal here.

 

RCRUISE2, on behalf of the C.C. court,for your actions and the post you submitted,we sentence you to Devil's Island.The French Colony prison that Dustin Hoffman and Steve McQueen were sent to in 'Papillon'.The only cruising your allowed to do off the island, is tie alot of coconuts together,jump on and paddle in circles.//// TY.

[chasetf]

Whats a VHF handheld??:confused:

Here is a place where you can see what they are........

http://www.nextag.com/handheld-vhf/search-html

[trock]

Here is a place where you can see what they are........

http://www.nextag.com/handheld-vhf/search-html

 

 

Thank you!

So its a marine scanner...

hmmmm interesting...

[chasetf]

...........But then the dude may have thought it through and decided to take his refund, catch a puddle-jumper from Cayman to MoBay, and spend a couple of days where he really wanted to be anyway.

My question would be who cares about missing MoBay. We have been there and could care less about going back. It is one of the dirtiest cities, in dire need of a cleanup campaign, we have ever seen.

[sixgun8]

Sure. Actually, the guy who originated this "protest" made quick anouncement via microphone on the deck. The main point I got for myself was that ship officials do not want to talk to passengers, so if we collect signatures then at least we can be heard. There was no petition, at least initially.

This is 1st (and probably last - not my type of vacation) cruise I had, so to me the main point was to visit new places. I DO understand that health and life of single person matters much more than vacation objectives of 3000 people. BUT, at the same time I was SURPRISED that such a predictable situation (it is very possible with 3000 passangers + 1000 crew on the ship) handled in such inefficient manner. My point is that the Carnival, as a company should be responsible for not delivering the service that we paid for. Of course, they might be covered by different contractual conditions and this is what some people here say. This is why they have a freedom and flexibility for situations resolution. Well, I DO believe there are more efficient ways to handle this (e.g. get helicopter from Jamaika, Mexico, Kayman Islands...). They picked the cheapest (for them) solution regardless of all incovenience for the passengers. I just cannot agree with it in principal, so this is why I put my signature there.

 

 

yeah I'll let you hang very precarilously on that limb that you crawled out on there. First I thought maybe your "c" key wasn't working, but it works in other words, so the spelling of jamaica and Grand Cayman is obviously just you.

 

Sure they are well prepared to handle just such an emergency and the way they handled this one is THAT EXACT PLAN. I am fairly certain that there are guidelines within their manual for SOP that state who they are to contact for medical emergencies depending on where they are. And then more than likely when they contact these people I am betting their SOP is to immediately cooperate with that contact.

 

sorry, but you kinda killed your point

[TheDINGOateMyBaybay!]

Good for Cpt. It's his ship, so he has final say.

 

I'll bet this man would be the very type person to to SUE CCL if he had been the one sick, yet the ship kept sailing on to Jamaica. Gosh, sometimes people who are so unaware of their own surroundings, and so uncompassionate of their fellow sailors (including crew) it is amazing.:cool:

 

Glad you had an excellent time though. I can not wait to sail on the conquest! Maybe you'll post a review?!:D

 

This is what I was hearing around the ship and did personally witness some of.

 

Just return from the Conquest yesterday and it was a great cruise. Late Monday evening(9pm or so) the ship’s passengers get the news that there was a very sick person on board and that we would be meeting up with an US Coastguard Helicopter late that night. And as a result of this it might compromise the Montego Bay stop. The pick up was made about 12:30am. The news around the ship was that it was a sick crew member. My cabin steward confirmed this. Hearing from folks that had GPS’s they said we turned around and started heading back some time in the early evening. (8pm or so) After the pick up was made the folks with GPS’s the next morning were saying that we were going in big circles all night and were cruising at a snails pace. I do know that part was true because that morning I went to the rear of the ship and could barely see any trail in the water behind the ship. (Barely any propeller turbulence at all) On sea day two we still were just cruising around 10 knots and in big circles according to the folks with GPS’s.

 

We finally get the news that we were not going to be making the scheduled stop in Montego Bay and that we would get another “Fun Day At Sea” and a “$25 per person ship board credit”. So this news made some people very upset and even madder when they found out that all the ship was offering was a $25 credit per person that was really just a reimbursement of port fees. One man on the ship starts a petition in protest for missing the port after he felt he was being lied to. He thought that we could still make the port after the four or so hour’s and that the going in circles all night and cruising very slowly all night and the next day was causing us to miss the port. This man starts a protest in front of the purser’s deck with all of his followers (around a 100 people). The purser’s deck calls the Captain; he couldn’t make the crowd happy and then the man that started all this gets very vocal with the captain. The Captain basically states I can’t do anything about it, it's out of my hands, you need to take it up with Carnival when you get back. This man is still mad and vocal so to solve everything he boots the man that started all this off the ship in Grand Cayman. That was the big news around the ship after that. Everyone one talking about did you here about that man the Captain booted off the ship for starting all that mess…

 

This didn't affect our cruise because I like sea days and if we were to miss a port I'm glad it was Montego Bay instead of Cayman of Cozumel. The $25 per person credit was listed on our final bill as a refundable credit.