Crew Lifeboat Training - Majesty of the Seas

Good morning,

I recently took my morning stroll on Deck 7, Promenade Deck, and found the crew involved in lifeboat training.  Of course, I had my baby camera in my pocket so got some images of the lifeboat hanging over the side and in the water seven decks below.

As required by the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), at the beginning of every cruise passengers/guests are required to attend a "mustering" to learn where their lifeboats are and what to do in case of an emergency.  Guests all "muster" or gather to receive these instructions on the deck where life boats will be boarded in case of a real emergency.  Guests do not actually get into lifeboats during a drill.  For crew lifeboat training, however, it is a different story.

The crew drills occur while the ship is tied up in a port and guests are not involved in the drill.  At the bottom of this image you can see guests seven decks below walking into Nassau from the ship.

And, this image gives an even more comprehensive view.

Crew members are trained and drilled regularly while at the same time...

...checking to be sure all equipment is working properly.

In case of a real emergency the lifeboats are brought close to the edge of deck 7 where the gates of the deck line up perfectly with the side entrances to the lifeboats.  Guests will already have life jackets either from their staterooms or provided to them on deck 7 by crew members.  Crew members will then help guests step directly into the boats and be seated.  There are plenty of life boats for all guests and there is plenty of space for everyone to be seated comfortably.  The lifeboats are somewhat bigger than they appear in these images;  each lifeboat holds 150 people.  There are additional life rafts (large, orange, covered auto-inflatable rafts) provided for crew who are not assisting guests in lifeboats.  Everyone has a way to evacuate and a specific orderly way to do it if necessary. 

In a real emergency the guests will be assisted into life boats very, very quickly loaded...

...and lowered into the water by trained crew members.

All crew members are trained and have specific jobs during an actual emergency.

During a crew training drill, after a brief trip on the water around near the ship to test the engines and check other equipment, the lifeboat will be raised back into position and the crew members will go on to do their other regular jobs. 

I've come upon this and other drills many times while cruising.  It always fascinates me to watch how quickly and efficiently the crew is able to perform all of these tasks.

All of the information I have here is provided to guests during the lifeboat mustering.  It's important to attend the mustering at the beginning of a cruise to be sure you have all of the information as it applies to the ship you are aboard at the time.  If you are wondering about safety, statistics tell us it is much safer to take a cruise at sea than to drive your car to the grocery.

It pays to have my camera in my pocket whenever I go out for a walk.  I hope you enjoyed this series of images.

Best,
Lois

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SOLAS: International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 : 1994 amendments 

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