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Mythbusters: Cruising has Become Dangerous

I’ve been on many cruises on several lines from both coasts. All that time at sea, I felt relatively safe. All passengers and crew members are required to participate in a muster drill that acquaint the travelers with their life vests and lifeboat stations. Every crew member has been trained in emergency procedures. But all the most recent news is troubling.

A man falls overboard, apparently drowning. A tour group from a ship is killed when the bus goes off the road. A ship catches on fire. These are the headlines, but, what about the rest of the story?

The man overboard was also drunk, according to friends. The tour bus was unlicensed to carry passengers and not associated with the cruise line. Someone was smoking a cigarette illegally in the cabin. There have been other problems over the years with engine failure and electric systems gone awry.

But look at the statistics. There are now over 180 cruise ships carrying an average of 1500 passengers weekly. That’s 270,000 people or 14,000,000 passengers. Assuming some travel multiple times, it’s still a huge number of travelers that, more times than not, arrive safely. Only 52 people have gone overboard in the past 10 years while cruising. Those are the facts.

Commercial airplanes, railroads, and buses have mishaps quite often. Yet, when something happens on a cruise ship, it makes news for days. Perhaps it’s because these massive luxury yachts aren’t expected to have any problems. Since the ‘Titanic,’ safety has been a key issue. Adequate lifeboats, drills and new fire-fighting equipment, provide higher levels of safety. Add to that, GPS, (global positioning systems) radar, and hi-tech azipod propellers and stabilizers that offer unparalleled maneuverability for smooth and worry-free, sailing.

Getting on an airplane is easily done and taken for granted. Yet falling from over 30,000 feet doesn’t seem to phaze anyone. Trains and buses zooming around at fifty miles and hour over high cliffs isn’t problematic, for some reason. But these modes of transportation can kill far more easily if one is involved in a crash. Has anyone ever heard of a cruise ship hitting another, flipping over, or falling to the bottom of the ocean?

Today, it’s a physical impossibility. With compartmentalized structure that isolates troubled areas, a whole ship can’t go up in a fire or explosion. The primary suspect spot is cordoned off allowing the remaining structure to survive. In addition, the lifeboats are also state-of–the-art and provide shelter and reliable escape.

Most of the ships cruise warmer waters, because of passenger demand. Island hopping is fairly common. With the exception of Alaska and other northern points, ships sail in tepid water and therefore, even if one had to end up in the ocean, their survival chances are quite high. Compare that to a damaged airplane, plummeting toward earth.

I would feel safer on a cruise ship than almost any other way to travel. Read mortality rates on motorcycles, of course cars, and even bicycles. The tour buses are less safe as they have to deal with unpredictable traffic and weather conditions. A sudden rainstorm or high wind has little effect on a 70,000 ton vessel, although most newer ships boast over 90,000 tons. Since the ‘Titanic’ days, the hulls are more prepared to counter any impact. And don’t forget that most newer ships have a space on deck to accommodate a helicopter for medical emergencies. They also have a doctor, nurse and pharmacy on board. Can you say that about any other form of travel?

In conclusion, I’ll take my chances onboard a world-class cruise ship when planning my next vacation. The few rare instances I mentioned in the first paragraph are anomalies. For the most part, cruising will always provide a safe haven as you move toward that next tropical isle. So for now, it’s a ‘Bon Voyage’ rather than a ‘Bad Voyage.’ Myth busted!