00:00Welcome aboard the Spirit of Discovery, a cruise ship that promises a memorable maritime crossing around the Canary Islands,
00:07the infinite ocean of a blue azure, a refined cuisine, an irreproachable service, luxury cabins,
00:15but also a nightmare that you could keep in memory for the rest of your life.
00:19This is precisely how a high-end cruise organized by the company Saga Cruises ended last year.
00:25Instead of enjoying a peaceful stay, the passengers were plunged into fear and anxiety, not to mention the many injured.
00:32Here's why.
00:33On October 24, the Spirit of Discovery pack boat launched into a two-week cruise around the Canary Islands.
00:40On board were about 1,500 people, including 1,000 passengers and the rest made up of crew members.
00:48The first week went smoothly, but the pack boat then faced a size problem.
00:54Violent gusts of wind and gigantic waves.
00:57The captain decided to return to the United Kingdom earlier than expected, but it was too late.
01:03The ship was trapped in a violent storm in the middle of the Gulf of Gascony.
01:07A gust of wind, a force of 11 on the Beaufort scale, hit the ship hard.
01:13To better grasp the gravity of the situation, know that such a force is enough to uproot trees,
01:18seriously damage homes and plunge entire cities into chaos.
01:22Although these storms are rare, the Spirit of Discovery had the misfortune of being at the heart of one of them.
01:29On this scale, 11 is the penultimate level, just below the 12th, which corresponds to a hurricane.
01:36The gusts reached 100 km per hour, comparable to the average speed of a truck on the highway.
01:42In addition to making the Spirit of Discovery flutter, they generated impressive waves, culminating at 8 meters in height.
01:49Imagine a wall of water, high as a three-story building, collapsing with a crash on a lonely deck.
01:56It was at this moment that the captain, through the loudspeakers,
01:59sent a message to all the passengers, urging them to stay in their place.
02:04The tension in his voice was palpable.
02:07Everyone was invited to lie down and cramp firmly.
02:11According to the collected testimonies, the ship remained trapped in the storm for nearly 15 hours.
02:16Passengers clung to the energy of despair to avoid being thrown against the walls.
02:21During all this time, tables were flying in the corridors,
02:24plates were breaking and furniture was sliding in all the cabins.
02:28The waves broke the windows, the locks and the doors.
02:31Some, exhausted, ended up letting go, unable to resist any longer.
02:37The storm violently threw the passengers from the ceiling to the ground, from one wall to another.
02:43The crew, in a remarkable effort, transformed the dining room into a fortune-teller's infirmary,
02:48in order to help the wounded.
02:50Despite these difficult conditions, they were able to show professionalism.
02:55They kept the passengers informed of the situation and tried to keep calm.
02:59Thanks to their efforts, no panic or chaos broke out on board.
03:04Once the storm calmed down, the ship returned to land,
03:09where the emergency services immediately took care of eight passengers,
03:12evacuated urgently to the hospital.
03:14One of them, unfortunately, did not survive this ordeal.
03:18Fortunately, the ship did not cross the road of an accelerated wave during the storm.
03:22This natural phenomenon can arise as well in the middle of a storm as in calm waters.
03:26It is a colossal wave reaching 18 meters in height.
03:30Comparable to a six-story building, it crashes on a ship at lightning speed,
03:36making it capsize before suddenly darkening.
03:39It is not a legend, such a wave has already been observed in the Gulf Stream,
03:44offshore of Charleston, in South Carolina.
03:47Facing it is not a joyful perspective.
03:51Let us now return to one of the most striking maritime tragedies of the past.
03:55No, this is not the Titanic.
03:58Here we mention the Greek ship Laconia,
04:01which left the English port of Southampton on December 19, 1963,
04:05with more than 600 people on board.
04:08However, only three days after its departure,
04:11a terrible tragedy struck the ship in the vastness of the Atlantic.
04:15Around 11 p.m., an electrical malfunction occurred in the hair salon.
04:21This problem triggered a fire that quickly spread to other sections.
04:26The crew, overwhelmed by the propagation of flames,
04:29was unable to control the situation.
04:32The crew of the ship triggered the fire alarm,
04:35but no evacuation order was given.
04:38It was only two hours later that the captain ordered the passengers to leave the ship.
04:42During this period of time, the passengers continued to relax in their cabins
04:47or enjoy a party in the ballroom.
04:50The crew was probably trying to put out the fire without causing panic.
04:54However, when the situation became critical,
04:57the evacuation order was given.
05:00Panic then won the passengers, who rushed to the lifeboats.
05:05Unfortunately, many did not manage to board.
05:08John Morris was one of these shipwrecked.
05:11He survived the disaster and said he placed his family in a lifeboat
05:15before staying on board, without even having a life jacket.
05:19Having nowhere to take refuge,
05:21the crew opened a bar to allow the passengers to relax a little.
05:26But at that moment, the boiler rooms began to explode inside the ship,
05:31making it clear that it would not remain afloat for a long time.
05:35John Morris decided to dive into the water, still dressed in his smoking suit.
05:40Once in the water, he grabbed a piece of wooden cargo
05:43and swam as far as possible from the ship.
05:46The giant lifeboat could sink at any moment.
05:49Yet, a ship of this size, sinking,
05:52creates a powerful whirlwind that sucks in everything around it.
05:55Rescuers arrived at the scene some time later.
05:58Fortunately, John Morris' wife and their young son were found alive.
06:03But his mother-in-law did not survive, like so many other victims that day.
06:07After this incident, the Greek Ministry of the Merchant Navy
06:11conducted an in-depth investigation.
06:13For two years, the investigators collected the testimonies of the passengers and the captain,
06:18studied in detail the technical characteristics of the ship,
06:21and drew their conclusions.
06:23According to their reports, the evacuation order was given too late by the crew.
06:28As a result, all the passengers were not able to embark in the lifeboats,
06:32half of which remained unused on board due to the chaos related to the evacuation.
06:37Several Pakbo officers were accused of negligence,
06:40although the most severe critics focused on the captain and his second.
06:44As for John Morris, he claimed to have been a miracle worker that day.
06:48Another unusual story, much more recent,
06:51took place on a cruise ship.
06:53Rest assured, the ship did not sink,
06:56no evacuation was necessary,
06:59and the weather was perfect.
07:01However, this trip became a real nightmare for many passengers.
07:05Imagine that after working hard and saving a long time,
07:09you finally realized your dream.
07:11A cruise in the Caribbean, on board the Celebrity Mercury.
07:15You arrive in South Carolina, starting point of the journey,
07:19and board, impatient to enjoy a week of relaxation.
07:22At the departure, everything goes wonderfully.
07:25The passengers have fun, the chefs prepare delicious meals,
07:29and the idyllic days extend into festive evenings.
07:33But suddenly, many passengers fall ill.
07:36Some run to the toilet, while others vomit in the corridors.
07:40Very quickly, the cruise turns into chaos.
07:43The number of people suffering from symptoms of what seems to be a food poisoning,
07:48never ceases to increase.
07:49You yourself have tasted the seafood served at the restaurant,
07:52but, luckily, you escape this disease,
07:55unlike more than 400 other passengers.
07:58Nearly a quarter of the 2,000 people on board suffer from severe gastrointestinal disorders.
08:03The crew, overwhelmed, devotes themselves to constant cleaning.
08:07The bridges are washed continuously,
08:09anti-nausea drugs are distributed,
08:12and passengers are asked to stay in their cabins until their recovery.
08:16The captain sends samples to Earth
08:19to identify the exact cause of the poisoning.
08:23Despite everything, the cruise is irrevocably spoiled,
08:26leaving everyone with unpleasant memories.
08:29In compensation, the cruise company offers valid certificates for future trips.
08:35Of course, this is not an ideal solution,
08:38but it is still better than nothing.
08:40And if, instead of a simple poisoning,
08:42a bacterium had turned the passengers into zombies?
08:45This scenario would be as terrifying as thrilling.
08:49Do you think you could survive on a ship full of zombies?
08:52And if so, how?
08:54Share your ideas in the comments.
08:59NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
Comments