Fire on Board the Liberian Passenger Ship Ecstasy, Miami, Florida ...

Analysis 65 Marine Accident ReportAdequacy of Passenger and Crew SafetyAlthough no one was seriously hurt in the Ecstasy accident, the Safety Boardidentified several areas in which improvements could be made to the safety practices onthe ship.Passenger DrillSOLAS requirements stipulate “musters of passengers shall take place within 24hours after their embarkation.” Carnival Cruise Lines conducted an emergency drill forthe Ecstasy’s passengers before the vessel sailed, which, in this case, was beneficial, giventhat the fire broke out within a half hour of the ship’s departure from port. Passengersreceived instructions in English and Spanish to prepare them for an evacuation, includinginformation on how to don their lifejackets and on where to assemble in the event of anemergency. During the drill, the bridge sounded the general alarm signal, and passengershad to practice the route to their assigned muster stations as if they were participating in areal emergency.Of the 300 passengers surveyed by the Safety Board about the emergency, 126responded. More than half of the respondents, or 79 passengers, indicated that the drillwas valuable in preparing them for the actual emergency. The remaining surveyrespondents identified various problems or situations that were not addressed during thedrill. Several people indicated that the drill did not include specific information about fireemergencies, including what to do if they encountered smoke or fire. A number ofrespondents who had to move to a different muster station because of smoke said that thedrill did not provide information about what to do if a muster station was not available.One person stated that she did not hear any instructions from the crewmembers at hermuster station but followed the crowd when everyone started leaving the station. Severalpassengers commented that they could not readily distinguish those crewmembers whowere trained to assist them because vessel personnel all wore the same uniforms.For an emergency drill involving several thousand people to be effective, theinformation disseminated must be concise and essential for survival. The Safety Boardnotes that, in addition to the practice drill, Carnival Cruise Lines provides passengers withemergency information in a variety of ways. The company broadcasts general cruiseinformation, including emergency procedures, on television monitors at the embarkationpoint where passengers line up to board the ship. In the staterooms, Carnival Cruise Linesposts evacuation procedures on placards and broadcasts emergency procedures on atelevision channel devoted to cruise information. The company has television monitors atthe bars in passenger lounges to disseminate announcements and other information.Safety Board investigators reviewed the drill script used by the Ecstasy’s cruisedirector as a reference for necessary subjects to cover in the drill. The script makes nomention of actions that passengers should take if they see smoke or if their muster stationis not available.