"Uncharted Rocks" and Other Tall Tales - Clipper Adventurer Ran Into A Charted Hazard
The Nunatsiaq News published an interesting article this morning, entitled "Clipper Adventurer Ran Into A Charted Hazard, Expert Says."
You will recall that following the grounding of the Clipper Adventurer cruise ship in the Canadian Arctic on August 27th, the cruise operator issued a press statement claiming that the cruise ship ran aground on an "uncharted rock." The owner even went as far as to make this whopper of an excuse: "we were simply following the chart that we had and right where there wasn’t any indication that there was something in the water, there was this large rock.”
My response in my blog last week? "Sounds like a PR statement to explain some bad navigational skills by whomever was at the helm."
Well now the little Canadian newspaper, the "Nunatsiaq News," tells us the truth.
“The cruise ship effectively ran into an underwater cliff,” John Hughes Clarke, head of the University of New Brunswick’s Ocean Mapping Group. “Had they been just a few ship lengths to the east or west they would have missed it.”
The supposedly “uncharted rock” that the ship hit had been reported by the Canadian Hydrographic Service and in a Notice to Mariners issued by Coast Guard in 2007. And it is the responsibility of the chart retailers and/or the ships officers to update their charts and note these hazards when they are issued.
Many cruise ships are heading into riskier areas, said Hughes Clarke. “The problem is cruise ships want to go off the safe shipping lanes where there is more dramatic topography or stunning wildlife,” he said.
The newspaper also states that the damages to the ship was more extensive than initially reported. The Clipper Adventurer’s hull had sustained "important damages and that many watertight compartments were ruptured."
Its good to finally get the real story.
Credit: UNB Ocean Mapping Group
The newspaper indicates that 26-year-old crew member Nyoman Putra, an Indonesian working as an assistant room steward on the Carnival Glory, allegedly had child pornography on a laptop computer..jpg)
Perverts, Child Predators and Cruise Ships (Carnival crewmember caught with child pornography in Halifax!!)
security guards? Or will they continue to try and save money with only 2 or 3 inexperienced "guards" trying to protect 2,000 or 3,000 passengers?"
Several news have reported the incident; however, no one disclosed the name of the cruise ship or cruise line. The passenger was taken to a hospital in Australia..jpg)
The newspaper reports that the Clipper Adventurer, operated by Adventure Canada and carrying around 200 passengers and crew, ran aground Friday evening in "three meters of water." The location of the grounding is about 55 nautical miles from Coppermine, Nunavut, near the border with the Northwest Territories
the rescue of the passengers aboard the Ocean Nova. 
Update August 29, 2010:
illegal for such ships to discharge oily bilge water, "gray water" from sinks and showers and other hazardous waste. But a key provision that also banned sewage releases could not legally take effect until the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency gave permission under the federal Clean Water Act. The Bush administration did not act on California's request to enforce the state law.
forcing cruise ships to follow stringent sewage treatment rules before disposing of waste those states..png)
Norwegian Cruise Lines have prepared "forum selection clauses" which include Federal District Court in Miami as the location where the passenger is required to file suit. The United States Supreme Court has upheld the right of cruise lines to use "forum selection clauses," even though the passenger lives far away in California or New York and travel to Miami provides an economic hardship.
elderly woman; she was financially unable to bring a lawsuit in Paris; she was a California resident with medical limitations, due in part to her injury, that prevent her from traveling to Paris; she would not be entitled to Medicare benefits if she became ill in France during her case; and Paris is a remote, alien forum chosen merely as a means of discouraging passengers from bringing legitimate claims.
The article quotes the vice president of the cruise line's marketing, Glenn Ryerson, stating that "It's only a crime if the FBI deems it to be one. At this point its only an alleged rape." .jpg)
cadetship to become a navigational officer. After she reported being raped, her lifeless body was found floating in the water off the coast of Croatia. It is unknown whether someone pushed her overboard or she committed suicide.
The newspaper indicates that she was raped by a fellow South African, a fitness instructor, and sent home after reporting the incident. 
cruise line now calls its "Global Security Department." The question is whether Mr. Bald and his new team of ex-FBI agents are genuinely trying to protect the passengers and crew and help build a case against the rapists which have targeted Royal Caribbean passengers and crew members. 
The week started with the travel site Tnooz picking up our article .jpg)
norovirus on board, following the usual ill-fated last minute "additional sanitizing."
This is one of the classic problems with the cruise lines. They are terrified of bad press so they sweep the bad news under the rug. But when the truth comes out, they look like they are hiding the ball. The new cruise law will address this issue. Cruise lines will be required to report crimes at sea and also provide a link on their web sites to the crime data. 
Today, the House of Representatives passed a bill - H.R. 5503 (also known as the SPILL Act) - which will amend the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA). H.R. 5503 will permit the widows and children of the oil rig workers killed in the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster to be compensated for their grief, mental anguish and suffering due to the deaths of their husbands and fathers. .jpg)
U.S. House Judiciary Committee. .jpg)
Today, the bad guys - BP, Transocean and the cruise lines - lost. The good guys won..jpg)
One of the dangers of cruising is the cruise ship catching on fire. Most families who go on a cruise don't like to think about it. .jpg)
During the ensuing investigation, the captain of the Tropicale testified that he was concerned that the engine room would explode. He kept information about the raging fire from passengers because he worried they might panic and jump overboard, according to the St. Pete Times article "
was paying attention to the cruise line. Everyone was listening to Pastor Surratt tweeting away on the cruise ship in the Mediterranean. Fortunately no passengers were injured.
"Siblings Take on Cruise Line after Father’s Death" 
Awakened by fire alarms shortly after 3 a.m., Liffridge and Vicky struggled out of their stateroom and into a hallway, but failed to reach fresh air. Vicky was one of 13 people later treated for smoke inhalation.
“He was at the peak of his life,” Henry said.
While the cruise line made sure the Star Princess’ passengers got a rebate for the incomplete cruise and a discount on their next excursion, the Liffridge family had to pay to have their father’s remains returned to the United States, Hudson said..jpg)
“No amount of money will replace our loss,” she added. “The main thing for us is that another family does not have to go through this like we did.” .jpg)
risks of a cruise fire which killed her father: 
