Cruise Ship Muster Drill is a Must
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All Cruise Passengers Must Attend Muster Drill
Yes, you MUST Muster. It could save your life!
You probably won't ever need the information provided at the safety briefing.
But what if you do? Be sure to listen, so that you know what to do if your cruise ship should find itself in a situation even remotely similar to that of the Costa Concordia or (heaven forbid) the Titanic.
If you've not cruised before, this page will tell you what to expect from muster drill. Even if you have ... did you know that there's been a change because of the Concordia disaster? I'll talk about that, too.
Photo (my own): Crew members getting ready for a Lifeboat Drill
page created 02/13/2012
last updated 05/28/2012
Contents at a Glance
Those on Titanic thought
nothing could happen to their ship.
So did those on the Costa Concordia.
Ships hold Muster Drills for a reason.
Listen for the Emergency Signal
Seven Short, followed by One Long
The emergency signal is:seven short blasts,
then one long blast
on the ship's horn and inside alarms.
This is the signal that it's time to go to Muster Drill.
If you hear it any other time, it's an emergency!
Must I Attend Muster Drill?
All Passengers are Required to Attend the Safety Drill
YES, you MUST. I have attended so many of them I could recite the presentation by heart. Heck, I could GIVE the thing. I still have to go.At the drill, you learn what to do in case of an emergency at sea. This knowledge could save your life!
Even if you've heard it before, you still must attend. And pay attention! (Or at least be polite enough to refrain from chatting, so that others can hear the presentation. PLEASE)
Muster drills used to all be held on deck, at the actual muster stations. You had to bring your lifevest and practice putting it on properly. In recent years, this has changed on some cruise lines. Some assembly points are inside. Many no longer require you to bring your life vest.
Most lines verify attendence, and some will hold the beginning of the drill until all passengers have arrived. Yes, they KNOW who you are! The last thing you want is to have a couple thousand others impatiently awaiting your arrival. This does nothing for your likability!
Are Muster Drills Boring?
Tip: Plan Evacuation Routes
Before Your Ship has Sailed
Once you are aboard your cruise ship, look at the chart on the inside of your cabin door, It tells you which Muster Station you should report to in an emergency, and includes a diagram, with the to route your station marked.Determine the easiest routes to your muster station - without the use of an elevator - from areas where you may be spending large chunks of time. For example:
Your stateroom
Your dining room
The bufffet
The pool area
It's way easier to get to where you need to in the midst of 3000 or so confused and/or panicky people if you already know how to get there! Remember, in an emergency, elevators will be disabled.
Muster stations are on an outer deck accessible to lifeboats, and the various stations are typically marked with an overhead sign, similar to the one circled in the above photo, which I took on a Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship.
Because of Titanic,
new safety regulations
were implemented on her
Sister Ships Olympic and Britannic
Muster Drill Attendance Quiz
Additional Safety Drills for the Crew
real Lifeboat Drills
In spite of the fact that many people refer to muster drill as the "lifeboat drill," no one ever actually gets into a lifeboat during these drills.However, true lifeboat drills are held on a regular basis, during which crew members practice their assigned roles for emergency situations. During some of these drills, cruise ship crew members practice getting into the lifeboats, lowering them into the water, and navigating them.
These drills are often held while the ship is in a port. I've seen number of these drills, and they're quite interesting to watch.
Lifeboat drill, Mariner of the Seas (photo: mine)
Because of Costa Concordia,
new Muster Drill Regulations
have been implemented worldwide
Muster Drill Change
Because of the Costa Concordia Disaster
When Costa Concordia sailed from Civitavecchia (Rome) at 7 pm, some 600 new passengers joined those already aboard. There had already been a muster drill for the continuing passengers. But, when the ship hit the that evening, those 600 new passengers had not attended a drill.Still, the Concordia was within the law. It states a drill must be held within 24 hours of embarkation.The several hundred passngers who joined the ship at Civitaveccchia were scheduled to attend a drill the next day.
As a result of what happened just off the coast of Giglio, international cruise organizations, including CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association), The International Maritime Organization (IMO), and others have agreed that - effective immediately - muster drills MUST take place BEFORE a cruise ship sails from a port of embarkation.
Photo: my own
New Duel Debate Module
Most every ship sailing from a US port already was holding muster drill before sailing. But that was not the case for all European sailings, particularly Italian ones.
Were the international cruise organizations right to change the rule to mandate muster drills BEFORE sailing?
Yes. People should recieve safety instructions BEFORE sailing in ALL cases.
blizzard54 says:
Only once have we had muster drill the next day and it actually caused some panic because we had been advised that we will be behind schedule because of an engine problem with one of the 4 engines.
gottaloveit says:
Of course you should have muster before sailing. The only time I skipped one was on the last cruise with 95 year old Mom, Gert. I had to talk to the Captain with my reasoning (it was snowing in baltimore and I wasn't putting mom through it). He agreed once I mentioned this was about our 15th cruise.
WriterJanis says:
These are important so people know where to go in case of an emergency as each section is given a different area.
No. We are getting too many rules in this world. Common sense has to prevail in some instances.
In spite of occasional tragedies
like Titanic and Concordia,
Cruise Ships continue to be
a very safe form of transportation!
Bon Voyage!
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Do Famous Shipwrecks make you scared of cruising?
This year, it's been a century since the sinking of the Titanic, and we've recently seen a modern cruise ship, the Costa Concordia run aground.
Do stories like this make you think twice about taking a cruise?
NOTE: An estimated 16 million people cruise each year. Yet, there are fewer cruise deaths than there are in other forms of transportation.
Life Jackets and Safety Gear
on eBay
Personal Safety Devices
Attention All Cruisers!
Are you ready for Muster now?
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karmicchristian
Apr 17, 2012 @ 1:28 am | delete
- Learnt something new! Thank you!
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traveller27
Feb 14, 2012 @ 10:31 am | delete
- Very informative - well done!
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marymc Feb 14, 2012 @ 6:53 am | delete
- Well done, informative lens. Will be linking it in my cruise lenses later today.
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CruiseReady Feb 15, 2012 @ 1:30 pm | delete
- Thank you so much!
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gottaloveit
Feb 14, 2012 @ 6:12 am | delete
- Very good lens and very important. It's particularly the younger crowd who makes such a mess of muster. They're ready to party and not thinking of consequences.
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WriterJanis
Feb 14, 2012 @ 1:49 am | delete
- Well done lens with lots of good info. Blessed!
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About CruiseReady
This page about Safety Drills
has been blessed by SquidAngels
Index: Cruise Ship Muster Drills
by CruiseReady
Nothing fascinating here... just a cranky old lady who loves to cruise, watch the Indy 500, and follow tropical weather systems.
I live on Florida's...
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