How can a modern day cruise liner run aground?

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abe

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Jan 2, 2007
736
- - channel islands
..was someone asleep at the wheel? Peaceful rest M/S SeaDiamond.
 
Aug 14, 2005
50
Pearson P=30 Lake Huron
Just goes to show.....

Big boats can hit things, too. Wonder what will come out at the inquest....."Well gee, cap'n, the GPS chart plotter said there was nothing around for miles, so we told the watch to get some sleep." or "Well now we know for sure how fast we have to be going when we hit the rocks to put a hole in her." All hilarity aside, this is serious business. People could have been seriously hurt or killed. Kinda makes you wonder about the qualifications of the officers and crew.
 

higgs

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Aug 24, 2005
3,736
Nassau 34 Olcott, NY
People were probably killed

Last I heard they were still looking for two people unaccounted for off that boat.
 
Aug 15, 2006
157
Beneteau 373 Toronto
Always a combination of factors

Two large modern ships, a U.S. navy vessel and a cruise ship - have run aground on Proselyte Reef of St. Martin in the past twenty years. This is a reef whose position has been well known for over 200 years. How can this happen with GPS and modern instruments? Read the link below, or Google Proselyte Reef to read the report on the cruise ship grounding.
 
Jan 27, 2007
383
Irwin 37' center cockpit cleveland ohio
the inquery willnever be amde public

What the charts show is usually an approximation of where things are as most qre based on dead reckoning. GPS tells exactly where you are. The two can miss by miles. The problem here is the shoals were marked by lights, which were working at the time of the crash. It appears as though it was pilot error. Having worked on a dinner cruise ship I can see the problems. Both of our Captains were and are arrogant. One hit so many things (other ships, piers, etc.) that they finally made him retire after he turned 76. Two incidents comes to mind. In one case he was letting a customer steer the 125' ship, full of passengers. The novice turned the wheel and was heading for the rocks when I popped my head into the wheelhouse and said "Hard to starboard Captain. Rocks coming up." No hesitation. He leapt from his seat and corrected the course. I mentioned to the customer/captain that the wheelhouse is roughly 100 feet in front of the rear of the ship and when you think you have enough room to turn, there is a LOT of boat left behind, unlike your mid 20's size boat. Another time we ran over another boats anchor rode, and our Captain blamed the other Captain. Now it was the Fourth of July, with hundreds of anchored boats in or near the same area. There was no excuse. It was negligence, no...arrogance by our Captain to think he owned the Lake and had the right of way no matter what. So in the case of the sunk liner, a mate may have said something about their location, to which the Captain may have brushed it off, to dire consequences. We won't know till the inquest becomes public, if it ever will. The most fortunate aspect: It didn't list a lot. I just finished a book on the subject (the sinking of the Ferry boat in the North Sea) and found out how difficult it is to navigate stairways and halls when the boat is listing heavily to port or starboard.
 

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
This is a good account of the event.

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/04/07/greece.cruiseship.ap/
 
O

OT

Queen of The North

Same same story as Queen of The North(of BC ferry. BC. Canada). Two crews, one male and one female on duty at the time were suspect of having sex when ferry should make turn to port. Instead, the ferry sail straight ahead at full speed and hit the rocky island. Both crews cowardly refuse to talk to investigator. http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=2465339e-8f9d-45fd-9ee5-071b4380774c&k=20116
 
Dec 3, 2003
2,101
Hunter Legend 37 Portsmouth, RI
It Amazes Me...

...when you look at the video of the ship sinking, how deep the water is so close to shore that the ship goes completely under.
 

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
Paul, the report said that there is a volcanic

crater there so the parts above water will give a clue to the topography underwater. Those remnants are pretty steep.
 
Dec 3, 2003
2,101
Hunter Legend 37 Portsmouth, RI
Good Point, Ross! *yks

It even supports my theory, too! More reason to be aware of what is going on.
 

abe

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Jan 2, 2007
736
- - channel islands
Maybe the charts were in English....

..and they couldn't understand. Everyone in the bridge complaining "I don't understand it, its''english' to me"
 
Apr 1, 2007
80
Hunter 34 Nashville TN
Electronic nav.

I feel that it has gotten to the point where some people depend too much on electronic naviagation systems and don't look out to see what is really around them. Tom
 
Dec 3, 2003
2,101
Hunter Legend 37 Portsmouth, RI
I Agree Somewhat...

...about the dependence of electronic navs, but the paper this AM said it was a well-marked reef in a volcano caldera where Santorini is located. So the ship's captain has been charged with negligence and stands to serve 5 years in prison for his actions. The two missing Frenchmen (father and daughter) have not been found and it is expected that they didn't get out because they were so deep in the ship - possibly where the hull was breached. It's a bad way to go.
 
Dec 3, 2003
2,101
Hunter Legend 37 Portsmouth, RI
This Morning...

...the story was that there were difficult currents that caused the boat to veer off course within the volcanic caldera. Whetever happened, the ship's captain must not have been prepared for this type of eventuality. I think I would call it "lack of experience". Too bad that it happened.
 
Dec 2, 2003
4,245
- - Seabeck WA
Ya know, it seems to me that when ever we hear of

these disasters to a modern vessel, the first cliché heard is 'too much dependence on electronics'. I'll bet there was NO USE OF ELECTRONICS. In other words, I'll bet no one was looking at anything. Kinda like Letterman's boss.
 
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