Cruise Ship Off Greek Island Evacuated

[JoeyandDavid]

here is the latest<]

Captain charged in cruise ship sinking

By NICHOLAS PAPHITIS, Associated Press Writer

The captain of a cruise ship that sank off an Aegean Sea island, sending more than 1,500 passengers and crew onto rescue boats, was charged Saturday with causing a shipwreck through negligence.

The 469-foot Sea Diamond sank into the sea after hitting a well-marked and charted reef on Thursday, in fair weather, inside the Greek island of Santorini's sea-filled volcanic crater.

The ship's Greek captain was also charged with breaching international shipping safety regulations and polluting the environment, a Merchant Marine Ministry spokeswoman said. Another five officers were questioned, but the spokeswoman was unable to confirm a state TV report that they also had been charged. All six were set free, but will provide new testimony next week.

The ship had been minutes away from docking under the spectacular cliffs that make Santorini one of Greece's top tourist destinations. It was carrying 1,154 tourists, most from the U.S., and 391 hundred crew members.

The stricken vessel was evacuated in a three-hour operation, but Jean-Christophe Allain, 45, and his 16-year-old daughter, Maud, from Doue-la-Fontaine in western France were listed as missing, feared to have been trapped in their flooded lower-deck cabin.

A three-day search has found no trace of them; officials said a robot submarine would investigate the hulk  lying more than 330 feet under the water's surface  next week.

The evacuation revived memories of the September 2000 Express Samina ferry shipwreck off the holiday island of Paros, which killed 80 people.

Yiannis Evangelou, the head of Greece's association of travel and tourist agencies, said the Sea Diamond's rescue operation, which he watched from a nearby ferry, was "exemplary."

But some passengers complained of an insufficient supply of life vests and life boats, little guidance from crew members and being forced into a steep climb down rope-ladders to safety.

Claire Chevrier said she and her friends clung to the deck railing as the ship started sinking.

"It was the most horrifying experience in the world. There weren't enough life boats," said Chevrier, an 18-year-old from Boca Raton, Fla., to returned home on Saturday. "We had to walk a plank from the ship to a ferry boat."

Passengers said water quickly filled the bottom floors and spilled from the pools. Several people had broken arms, and many passengers didn't even have time to put on shoes after crew members started banging on doors yelling for people to put on their life jackets, Chevrier said.

Mindy Hochfelsen said her 18-year-old daughter, Amanda, is diabetic and lost her insulin and syringes. She said the cruise line and the government were not very helpful with people who had health needs.

"It was absolutely a disaster," Hochfelsen said.

A spokesman for the ship's Cyprus-based operator, Louis Cruise Lines, said the company was working closely with Greek investigators.

"We would like to express our deep sorrow over the accident, and our thoughts are with the two missing people and their family," said Giorgos Stathopoulos. "The Sea Diamond was fully up to date with its inspections."

The 21-year-old Sea Diamond sank at the end of a four-day cruise, which included visits to the islands of Mykonos, Rhodes, Patios and Crete, and to the Turkish resort of Kusadasi.

Tourism officials hastened to play down the potential impact on Greece's vital tourism industry  which accounts for an estimated 18 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product.

"Whoever is responsible for this will be held accountable in the strictest way," Tourism Minister Fanny Palli Petralia said. "Greece is a major tourism destination, and incidents like this must not be allowed to occur. ... Authorities handled the rescue very well."

Evangelou said the shipwreck  at the start of a promising tourist season  could put off prospective cruise-goers. "But ... an error by one human being cannot be seen as typical of safety and accident prevention measures in the country."

Greek newspapers were critical Saturday in their reporting of the accident.

[IBCRUZIN39]

Hey Everyone!!! I am a newbie on this forum so excuse any missteps.

I have been following this ship's sinking on the news. It is unfortunate and I am very glad that the evacuation went so smoothly.

I think that, because of this incident, coupled with the recent "man overboard" stories, the cruise industry is taking a beating in the news just at the beginning of the vacation season. I do not think it will cause experienced cruzers to rethink their vacation but for the segment of the vacationing community who have always been uncomfortable about the idea of being "surrounded by water," this is just the ammunition they need to continue to stay away from vacationing on a cruiseship. This is unfortunate.

I am, for the most part, a Carnival devotee and am pretty confident that Carnival, RCCL, NCL and the rest of the cruiselines that originate in the U.S. will have better trained employees and more than enough life vests. I cruise solo and even in a Cat. 1A, there are not less than 3-4 life vests in my cabin.

However, "note to self", in case of a need to evacuate, I will be sure to grab an extra life vest on my way out of my cabin, just in case someone I run into is lacking.

One of the news articles made mention of "the cruiseline paying for the lost clothing and other items." Does anyone know who something like this would work? Who takes the hit for all of the lost items that the passengers had with them onboard?

[Suzila]

Although the responsibility ultimately rests on the shoulders of the five people who were arrested, I think a lot of people dropped the ball on this matter. If I<] were about to do a muster drill and found there were no life vests in my cabin, I'd let the cabin steward know immediately. I think there's even a posting in the cabins that says such. Then, if the cabin steward didn't come through with it, surely you would get one when you showed up at the muster station for the drill?!?

OR<], maybe they didn't even have a muster drill? We don't know...no one has mentioned it so far.

On the other hand, we've been at muster drills where people showed up with drinks in their hand and talking throughout the entire presentation. I even had to tell two women to be quiet for a few minutes so we could hear what the announcements were. (needless to say, they weren't happy with me) I do take muster drills seriously, and always have. I consider the beginning of my cruise is when the muster drill is finished.

IBCRUZIN', welcome to the group. Where in Brooklyn are you from? I was born in Brooklyn, but we moved to the Bronx when I was 10 months old. My Mom came from Flatbush, and my daughter-in-law comes from Sheepshead Bay.

[IBCRUZIN39]

I now live in Starrett City, Brooklyn. I grew up in East New York section of Brooklyn and then moved to Atlanta, Georgia and stayed there for 14 years, got bored and returned to New York in 2000 (just in time for 9/11).

Good point about the life vest during muster drill and people thinking the muster drill is some sort of inconvenience. I am like you, Sue, I listen closely at every muster drill and then always check out the lifeboats (I mentally pick out the one I plan to head for).

I bet people will start to be more mindful of the muster drill for a bit now.

[radiofreebcj]

I agree that this incident should be taken seriously, and that the bridge crew should be held accountable for a potential environmental DISASTER in one of the most beautiful lagoons in the world. This is not a remote area with poor charts...this is Santorini, one of the most popular cruise destinations in the Med. There is NO excuse for this, and whoever was asleep at the wheel should have the book thrown at them...and then some.

This gives cruising a bad name, and hopefully the people in charge of cleaning it up get to it quickly before we lose another beautiful destination to carelessness.

Joey...I have no idea what you're talking about...it didn't take me long to what?

[JoeyandDavid]

i am just joeying you!!

[radiofreebcj]

Haha...that's what i figured.