Disney to the rescue

A few days ago, a 22 year old man who was a passenger on board Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the seas, somehow managed to fall overboard/ land up being in the water – but it wasn’t his own ship which came to his rescue – but a passing ship, the Disney Magic.

Passengers from the Disney Magic saw the gentleman in the water, who quickly alerted the Disney crew, they then quickly lowered one of their own lifeboats and deployed a rescue team to retrieve him from the water. The gentleman was taken to the nearest shore where he received further medical treatment. The report which I was reading didn’t say how far away the Oasis of the Seas was.

It is still unknown if the gentleman fell, was pushed, or jumped off the ship  – but the Oasis of the Seas is a big ship (and holds approx 6000 passengers) to fall from and I find it surprising that nobody on board the Oasis of the Seas saw him fall or were aware he was overboard. It does raise the question whether ships should have technology fitted such as motion sensors which would alert the bridge and the crew immediately someone has gone overboard.  Currently the coast guards rely on crew monitoring video monitors, which in this case didn’t seem to be able to help this gentleman.

I have often wondered how people fall overboard – I have always found on the upper decks the ledges to be high and not easy to climb over – especially with not being seen, also on a balcony again the ledges always seem to be high and for me unless I stand on a chair it is not possible to climb over – not that I have tried or want to go overboard.

Thankfully the man must have wished upon a star, and was his lucky day that the Disney Magic was passing at the time to rescue him otherwise, who knows if he would have been so lucky and not been lost at sea.

Do you think ships should have motion sensors if someone was to go overboard?

Have a good couple of weeks, I am off next week but sadly not going on a cruise, or away this time.

Kerry

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