MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Royal Caribbean “Grandeur of the Seas” suffers accident, cancels cruise
The vessel caught fire and was re-routed to Freeport, Bahamas (Photo: Reuters) Royal Caribbean International announced on Monday that the 31 May 2013 sailing of Grandeur of the Seas from Baltimore, Maryland, will be cancelled to allow for repairs to damages sustained as a result of a fire.
Guests booked on the May 31 sailing will be provided a full refund of the cruise fare paid for their sailing. Royal Caribbean also will provide these guests with the opportunity to sail in the future by providing a future cruise certificate for 50% of the cruise fare paid for the May 31, 2013, Grandeur of the Seas sailing.
Grandeur of the Seas was en route to CocoCay, The Bahamas, when the ship experienced a fire in the mooring area in the aft of the ship at approximately 2:50 a.m. Monday.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation. The power and communication systems were unaffected by the blaze.
The ship was redirected to Freeport, The Bahamas, where it will remain this evening.
Fortunately, there were no reports of serious injuries or medical emergencies related to the incident. The only incidents reported included fainting, high blood pressure and an ankle sprain.
Grandeur of the Seas is part of Royal Caribbean International's fleet of 21 cruise ships. The ship was launched in December 1996 and recently underwent a 48 million-dollar refurbishing in May 2012.
Grandeur of the Seas has a maximum capacity of 2,446 guests; measures 916 ft. long and 105.6 ft. in width; and has a cruising speed of 19 knots.
This is the latest in a long line of large cruise ship incidents that has many people questioning the entire industry and its safety standards. Thirty two people died in the 2012 Costa Concordia disaster off the coast of Italy.
In February and March two separate Carnival ships had issues with the electrical systems, toilet systems, and human waste overflowing.
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Read all commentsThere is something wrong here . Too many cruise ship mishaps lately . Does anybody control the safety of these ships ? Something similar to IATA in the airline business .
May 28th, 2013 - 12:46 pm 0I think the short answer is no. But they are to publish a customer charter: so that will be alright then, NOT.
May 28th, 2013 - 05:02 pm 0BTW IATA has NO role in the safety of aircraft, nor should it; it is only an industry association.
Aircraft safety is principally the responsibility of the operator to follow the law, etc. as policed by the various governments from which the aircraft operates.
That in itself is a worry when anyone flies Aerolineas Argentina and some of the African countries.
Western countries and certain others can be trusted to police their laws and prosecute transgressors. Regular servicing in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions is always mandated and even the 100 hourly inspections are mandated for civilian aircraft.
Transgressors which are found out after a crash are severely penalised and so they should be: they could have stopped the problem by simply withdrawing the ‘permission to fly’ from the engineering register thus preventing the legal use. No pilot who valued his licence and his own personal freedom would even consider ignoring the ban on flight.
2 Many thanks for clarifying . Now I know what they mean when they say if the airline can operate in the USA or EU it is a safe carrier . That is yo say that it fully complies with Government regulations . Which , I understand , are high .
May 28th, 2013 - 08:21 pm 0Perhaps you are being unfair to AA . I understand that they have very good maintenance procedures and qualified pilots . But a habit of going on strike at the worst moment , just before a holiday.
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