Norwegian Escape runs aground near Puerto Plata

[smokeybandit]

 

[sammy79]

I’m no sailing expert but that doesn’t look good. 

[smokeybandit]

 

[bobroo]

This is really bad news. 

I would bet a lot of money it is taking on water to some extent at the time this video was filmed. Thats why you don't see the clouds of silt from the azipods trying to free it. they shut those all down in an effort to account for all the crew and to stop the hemorhaging.

[sammy79]

I hope it doesn’t turn into next costa Concordia. 

[erinsmom03]

Yikes!!! 

 

[erinsmom03]

Looks like they are possibly waiting for high tide to be able to be freed...

https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/27005-norwegian-escape-runs-aground-off-dominican-republic.html

[smokeybandit]

If that doesn't work I wonder if they offload passengers in the morning for more buoyancy.

[sammy79]

How does this happen?  Don’t they have charts and radars to tell you how deep the water is?  Gotta be embarrassing for the captain 

[smokeybandit]

13 minutes ago, sammy79 said:

How does this happen?  Don’t they have charts and radars to tell you how deep the water is?  Gotta be embarrassing for the captain 

Twitter suggests it was the local pilot at the controls. Which is even more embarrassing

[twangster]

Passenger weight is minuscule.   Every passenger can run to one side of a ship and it would have negligible impact on the ships attitude.    If passenger weight was a factor they’d have everyone move aft but it doesn't work that way.   

Pilots advise but don’t take full command.  The insurance carriers don’t allow it.  The exception is the Panama Canal where the canal has their own insurance carrier that covers them when they take full command of the ship.   Even if a pilot was on board and issuing navigational orders the Captain knows the ship and how it handles in wind.   The Captain should have prevented this one way or another.

MSC Armonia rammed the pier in Roatan and carried on the same day so it’s very possible Escape will too once the tides get her free and they get a look in daylight.  

[Bill S]

I am a sailor.  And we have 2 friends that are harbor pilots.   In the US, command of a ship transfers to the harbor pilot.  They make all of the decisions.  That's why they are there, and that's why they are so expensive (staggeringly...). 

If the average passenger weighs 200 pounds, that's about 400 tons.  The ship is around 170,000 tons. Passenger weight is insignificant.

[Pattycruise]

4 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

If that doesn't work I wonder if they offload passengers in the morning for more buoyancy.

They are making them eat for 24 hours, then they’ll offload them.,,,and their luggage too!

[AspiringCruisePlanner]

Time to live up to your name, girl

[twangster]

She broke free at 12:45am and is continuing her cruise.   

[JohnK6404]

I'm glad no one appears to have been injured.

I could not resist! My wife brought up their commercial last night and was laughing... their ad campaign is so appropriate!

 

[smokeybandit]

8 hours ago, twangster said:

  Every passenger can run to one side of a ship and it would have negligible impact on the ships attitude

If I was a ship that ran aground, I wouldn't have a good attitude either.

[TXcruzer]

8 hours ago, Bill S said:

I am a sailor.  And we have 2 friends that are harbor pilots.   In the US, command of a ship transfers to the harbor pilot.  They make all of the decisions.  That's why they are there, and that's why they are so expensive (staggeringly...). 

If the average passenger weighs 200 pounds, that's about 400 tons.  The ship is around 170,000 tons. Passenger weight is insignificant.

The harbor pilot NEVER takes command of the vessel, the ships Captain always has command (with the exception of the Panama Canal).

SOMETIMES the harbor pilot will control the ship and give orders to the helmsman, this is on a case by case and ship by ship basis. Sometimes the pilot simply advises the captain and the captain gives the orders; but at no time is the pilot in command.

[smokeybandit]

 

[bobroo]

Smokeybandit and TXcruzer’s above are both correct regarding the protocols in these type of situations.

[AlmondFarmer]

27 minutes ago, bobroo said:

Smokeybandit and TXcruzer’s above are both correct regarding the protocols in these type of situations.

The correct protocol is women and children first, I know this is true because I saw it in a movie.
One could get hypothermia in 6-8 hours in the sultry Central American waters. 
 

Oh the ship wasn’t sinking. Never mind. 

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, AlmondFarmer said:

The correct protocol is women and children first, I know this is true because I saw it in a movie.
One could get hypothermia in 6-8 hours in the sultry Central American waters. 
 

Oh the ship wasn’t sinking. Never mind. 

Fun fact. A ship has never sunk in the Caribbean after hitting an iceberg.

[twangster]

13 hours ago, Bill S said:

I am a sailor.  And we have 2 friends that are harbor pilots.   In the US, command of a ship transfers to the harbor pilot.  They make all of the decisions.  That's why they are there, and that's why they are so expensive (staggeringly...). 

I have several moments like this captured from cruise ship Captains that state the opposite.  I'm not saying you are wrong for the vessels you sail, but this example from Captain Johnny is typical of what Royal Captains say about pilots - Pilots are not in command, they advise, they facilitate and coordinate local resources and nothing more.  

 

 

 

 

[stevendom57]

Rename it to Norwegian Can't Escape

[twangster]

In an Epic moment they Escape(d) from the (sand) bar in a GetAway maneuver earlier today.  Leaning on the namesake of this class the Breakaway moment occurred shortly after midnight.  

[AlmondFarmer]

Is it true that the captain proposed having all guests go to the pool deck and in a synchronized fashion, run between port and starboard to rock the ship free?

It is reported that upon hearing this, the cruise director vetoed the idea based on lack of rhythm and coordination he observed during the sail away dance party.

 

[smokeybandit]

Looks like another night in Puerto Plata.

 

Does that mean "oh crap there's a problem" or "this red tape to get sailing again insane?"

[CruiseGus]

3 hours ago, twangster said:

I have several moments like this captured from cruise ship Captains that state the opposite.  I'm not saying you are wrong for the vessels you sail, but this example from Captain Johnny is typical of what Royal Captains say about pilots - Pilots are not in command, they advise, they facilitate and coordinate local resources and nothing more. 

@twangster

Thank You.  You are always a wealth of information and your sharing it is much appreciated

Also isn't Taino Bay port atPuerto Plata a fairly new port of call for cruise ships that just opened in December of this year?

[smokeybandit]

NCL canceled the rest of this cruise and the next cruise after "minor" damage was found.

 

Passengers get a full refund plus 100% FCC

[twangster]

1 hour ago, smokeybandit said:

NCL canceled the rest of this cruise and the next cruise after "minor" damage was found.

 

Passengers get a full refund plus 100% FCC

So they didn't Getaway after all.  Oops.  Wrong ship.  

Do feel bad for them though.  No cruise line needs this during an already terrible time for the industry.  

[AlmondFarmer]

Add to the list all the innocent shellfish that got squished. Sad day.

[Bill S]

15 hours ago, TXcruzer said:

The harbor pilot NEVER takes command of the vessel, the ships Captain always has command (with the exception of the Panama Canal).

SOMETIMES the harbor pilot will control the ship and give orders to the helmsman, this is on a case by case and ship by ship basis. Sometimes the pilot simply advises the captain and the captain gives the orders; but at no time is the pilot in command.

Huh. Really?   That seems to conflict directly with my conversations with Harbor Pilots in Texas that I know.  And with established Maritime Law, and Pilotage Regulations in the US. 

"The legal rights and responsibilities of the harbor pilot's action in navigating vessels are well settled. The pilot has primary control of the navigation of the vessel, and the crew must obey any pilot order. The pilot is empowered to issue steering directions and to set the course and speed of the ship and the time, place, and manner of anchoring it. The captain is in command of the ship except for navigation purposes. The captain can properly assume command over the ship when the pilot is obviously incompetent or intoxicated.?

Note, the emphasis is mine:  The captain is NOT in command for navigation purposes. I will grant you, that the Captain retains command for everything except navigation.  Which is what the entire discussion is about.  Is the captain still in charge of whether or not the pool deck is open during pilot navigation?  Sure. Not the pilot's concern.  

[bobroo]

So........the Norwegian Escape has cancelled yet another cruise or two stating "repairs have taken longer than expected." Some sources say they are underwater repairs, some sources claim a dry dock is necessary.

Even you believe an ounce of any of this, I think you'd have to believe that they are repairing the hull. And, repairing the hull because it was leaking.

 

The Norwegian Escape is currently docked and convalescing in Port Canaveral. 

 

 

[Moby Dick]

On 3/16/2022 at 12:14 AM, Bill S said:

Huh. Really?   That seems to conflict directly with my conversations with Harbor Pilots in Texas that I know.  And with established Maritime Law, and Pilotage Regulations in the US. 

"The legal rights and responsibilities of the harbor pilot's action in navigating vessels are well settled. The pilot has primary control of the navigation of the vessel, and the crew must obey any pilot order. The pilot is empowered to issue steering directions and to set the course and speed of the ship and the time, place, and manner of anchoring it. The captain is in command of the ship except for navigation purposes. The captain can properly assume command over the ship when the pilot is obviously incompetent or intoxicated.?

Note, the emphasis is mine:  The captain is NOT in command for navigation purposes. I will grant you, that the Captain retains command for everything except navigation.  Which is what the entire discussion is about.  Is the captain still in charge of whether or not the pool deck is open during pilot navigation?  Sure. Not the pilot's concern.  

Exactly right.  The pilot takes command of navigation only.  I'd add though that the Captain can decide if there is a safety issue and if the Pilot is competent or not and halt the movement of the ship until another pilot can be hired/assigned.  Afterall, the Captain is ALWAYS responsible for the safety of the ship, cargo, passengers, and crew, no matter what.  I don't know if you'd find that type wording in any actual statute/law.  But, I bet it is in "case law" somewhere.  

 

[bobroo]

UPDATE: The Norwegian Escape is still docked in Port Canaveral and her upcoming April 9th sailing has been cancelled. This is the 5th cruise to cancel since the incident in March.

 

Note to self: when a cruise ship encounters a problem and the captain tells the passengers all is well and to just carry on but your gut feeling tells you otherwise-- DO NOT believe the captain. 

 

 

[twangster]

2 hours ago, bobroo said:

UPDATE: The Norwegian Escape is still docked in Port Canaveral and her upcoming April 9th sailing has been cancelled. This is the 5th cruise to cancel since the incident in March.

Note to self: when a cruise ship encounters a problem and the captain tells the passengers all is well and to just carry on but your gut feeling tells you otherwise-- DO NOT believe the captain. 

Clearly the ship is not in peril or at any risk.  It sailed back from the DR without incident.  Now it has to effect repairs and seek USCG approvals and clearance from classification inspectors.  Very routine any time any incident occurs on any ship like this.  

The ship was stable and not in any risk that would warrant mustering guests or crew.  It's also the Captain's job to avoid inducing panic.

I see no reason to second guess the Captain's actions in the wake of this event at this point.  If it was a major incident they would have sailed straight to a shipyard and not a US home port.  If the necessary repairs can't be affected while in Port Canaveral they may need to visit a shipyard but that won't mean there is risk of sinking or capsize.  First step is attempt repairs at a US port where there are qualified workers and supplies.  Sounds pretty reasonable to me.

[XtremeGK]

55 minutes ago, twangster said:

Clearly the ship is not in peril or at any risk.  It sailed back from the DR without incident.  Now it has effect repairs and seek USCG approvals and clearance from classification inspectors.  Very routine any time any incident occurs on any ship like this.  

The ship was stable and not in any risk that would warrant mustering guests or crew.  It's also the Captain's job to avoid inducing panic.

I see no reason to second guess the Captain's actions in the wake of this event at this point.  If it was a major incident they would have sailed straight to a shipyard and not a US home port.  If the necessary repairs can't be affected while in Port Canaveral they may need to visit a shipyard but that won't mean there is risk of sinking or capsize.  First step is attempt repairs at a US port where there are qualified workers and supplies.  Sounds pretty reasonable to me.

A lot of very good points here. We also don't know exactly what repairs are happening. We all know supply chain issues are a HUGE hold-up these days, and who knows how many items needed are stocked somewhere. Would not surprise me if a lot of cruise ship "parts" need to be custom made for that particular class of ship.

[TXcruzer]

3 hours ago, bobroo said:

UPDATE: The Norwegian Escape is still docked in Port Canaveral and her upcoming April 9th sailing has been cancelled. This is the 5th cruise to cancel since the incident in March.

 

Note to self: when a cruise ship encounters a problem and the captain tells the passengers all is well and to just carry on but your gut feeling tells you otherwise-- DO NOT believe the captain. 

 

 

Why doubt the captain? All was well. No one was injured, he got everyone home safely, and the ship to port for repairs without incidence.  
Impugning the captain’s statements and trustworthiness is really uncalled for.