Carnival’s ‘Triumph’ Afloat

News Event - Since Sunday, Feb. 10, when a fire on board damaged the propulsion system of the ironically named ship Triumph, the planned four-day voyage to the Caribbean left the ship unable to sail and lacking power, sewage systems, air conditioning and heating, the 3,142 passengers and 1,086 crew members aboard have been stranded in the Gulf of Mexico.

Came on the heals of  a fire on the cruise ship Costa Allegra, owned by Carnival's Costa Cruises subsidiary, led to a similar lack of power, food and plumbing situation for more than 600 passengers.  An engine-room fire on Carnival's 952-foot Splendor in November 2010 left more than 3,000 passengers stranded for three days.  Azamara Club Cruises, whose parent company is Royal Caribbean (RCL), and the Mexican cruise ship Ocean Star Pacific also suffered power-killing fires in the past couple of years.

And of last years  Costa Concordia disaster, in which a partial sinking of the Italian cruise ship led to the loss of 32 lives and multiple manslaughter charges against the captain, Francesco Schettino, who reportedly fled the scene in a lifeboat while several passengers and crew members were still on board.

Passengers Return Home With Stories of Horror

My Views/Comments: No Contingency plans in place, no other ships to the rescue, or another Carnival Ship and of 4,228 people on board, would the Life Boat System Work, plus hold all on board, if the ship was to begin sinking. What if this happened off the coast of Somalia ?

Even if the Life Boat System worked, then what...who comes to the rescue ?

All Cruise Ship companies should have a Contingency Plan, a Quick Response Rescue Plan as our Military, especially when in International Waters. 

We have Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Teams (FAST) and Recapture Tactics Teams (RTT), so why not a S.W.I.F.T. (Security Water Intervention Forces Team) just made it up, sounded good...Maybe the Navy should get into the Cruise Ship business, recover some of our tax dollars.