Royal Caribbean International's Anthem of the Seas is headed back to its homeport of Cape Liberty, New Jersey after getting caught in a hurricane-force storm that rocked the ship something fierce, but I believe the passengers were never in any serious danger - however, that's not to say there weren't reported injuries.
A new video has surfaced this morning on ABC News showing the ship's Captain Claus Andre Andersen describing how the storm intensified beyond initially forecasted predictions, escalating from 40-50 knot winds to 150-160 knot winds in a short period of time. But the captain reassures guests, to whom the video was initially directed on stateroom televisions, that the ship was never in any danger of succumbing to the weather and that it actually handled it very well. Of course, the captain also realizes that the experience was not without discomfort.
The bottom line is that cruises, although vacations intended for escape, do still encounter real life from time to time. In 2012, Disney Cruise Line's Disney Fantasy was similarly affected by Hurricane Sandy as reported at The Disney Blog. The swells were comparable at 40-50 feet, but the winds were not quite as severe, only 80 miles per hour. Still, some minor damage was also reported to the ship, but the vessel, like the Anthem of the Seas, remains safely afloat to this day. Damage which appears devastating, broken glass and fallen ceiling panels, is easily repairable.
Nonetheless, moments like this are indeed scary and certainly uncomfortable. I've experienced it myself recently onboard Silversea Expeditions' Silver Discoverer in Micronesia just a few months ago. That ship is substantially smaller than the Anthem with a capacity of only 120 passengers, so when we got caught in a storm, the resulting motion of the ship was also significant, causing two planned sea days to become six and delaying our arrival at the itinerary's final port by two days. Waves crashed at the bow with such force that the weather literally slowed us down, but I never felt unsafe.
Anthem of the Seas' captain says he has been with Royal Caribbean International for 17 years and has seen a wide variety of sea conditions, and he remarks that the storm they hit off the Eastern seaboard was "special." Coverage from USA Today reports that experts are wondering whether or not weather predictions should have shied the cruise line away from the route it took and if it was negligent to proceed.
But it's important to keep in mind that it is in the cruise line's best interests to maintain passenger safety, not just from a moral standpoint but an economical one as well. Passengers are the bread and butter of the cruise industry, and their perceptions drive cruise traffic. Reputation is everything, and Royal Caribbean is going above and beyond to save face. They are not contractually obligated to, but the line is still offering a full refund plus a future cruise certificate valued at 50 percent of the fare paid, according to Cruise Critic.
How the dust will settle is still to be seen, but the Anthem of the Seas and Royal Caribbean International are sure to set sail for smoother waters soon.
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