Queen of the West Fire this AM

Published: April 8th, 2008 by Richard | SocialTwist Tell-a-Friend

cliffhugger Queen of the West Fire this AM

An engine room fire at 12:31 this morning forced an evacuation of Queen of the West.

From a Coast Guard Media Release:

SEATTLE – The Coast Guard, state and local authorities have offloaded the passengers and non-essential personnel from the Majestic Cruise Line passenger vessel, Queen of The West, after it suffered an engine fire earlier this morning.

The Queen of The West was beached in a controlled manner in the vicinity of Maryhill State Park, where the passengers were offloaded safely over the vessel’s bow ramp.

The 124 passengers were transported by bus to Skamania Lodge, Ore.

One crewmember became wet while fighting the fire, and was taken to a local hospital after exhibiting signs of hypothermia. Three of the crewmembers were checked and released on scene for smoke inhalation.

The vessel owner plans to tow the Queen of The West to the Port of Klickitat, Wash., just upstream of The Dalles Dam, with a crew of 26 essential personnel. There they will prepare the vessel for a further tow to Sundial Marine in Troutdale, Ore., for repairs.

Klickitat County emergency services personnel managed the disembarkation and processing of passengers.

The Washington Department of Ecology organized precautionary shoreline protection operations along the river to address the risk of any oil pollution from the disabled vessel.

The cause of the engine room fire is under investigation.

Cruise Critic tells us:

The fire was noticed last night around midnight and the Coast Guard was notified. The incident occurred while the boat was sailing between The Dalles and John Day Locks (map); the boat was towed to Maryhill where the passengers were safely evacuated at around 5 a.m. Three crewmembers were treated and released for smoke inhalation by paramedics on the scene.

Queen of the West is undergoing assessment at this time to determine what caused the fire. Passengers were transported to local hotels; the remainder of the cruise has been canceled and they are being assisted in their travel arrangements by Majestic America Line staff.

A Seattle Times article is here.

Coast Guard audio, of this morning’s call from the John Day Dam control room.

One Passenger’s account of the incident.

Ed. note: It was Majestic America’s Empress of the North that grounded less than a year ago in Alaska. The gCaptain post is here:Empress Of The North while our Majestic Line posts are here: Majestic Cruise Line.

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About The Author
Captain Richard Rodriguez is a US Coast Guard approved instructor based in the San Juan Islands, Washington. Also a Rescue Tug Captain, Richard's posts on his blog "Bitterend" feature Vessel Assist calls that include live tracking of his vessel.
Full Profile: Richard

Categories: Cruise Ship · Fire Incidents

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  • Friendly Greeting Steef,

    I served in the in Navy for 4 years. I had the opportunity to take more advanced fire fighting classes in San Diego, Ca. I learned how to use what we called an OBA ( Oxygen Breathing Device ). Keep the candle lit and you have air.

    On the Battleship USS Missouri, I think we responded to two fires. Not in the engine room but one waste paper basket and one galley grease fire. The most difficult fires to work with was the "Fire Drill". You just couldn't see the imaginary fire. hahhahh just joking. We where well prepared.

    I've been on many vessels and most of them only have fire extinguishers and fire hoses. No protective safety gear of any kind to protect the fire crew. All you can do his hose yourself down and hope for the best. Fighting simulated fires in training I know how hot it can get. Not to mention the hot gases you just can't breath.

    You mentioned 1,500 passengers are in danger. The danger lies with the lack of proper fire fighting equipment and training. Most companies only carry the minim fire fighting gear which barely scratches the surface of what is needed to fight a fire successfully. I know the equipment and training is expensive but I feel it better than spending $$$ for more insurance. I talked to one captain about the lack of proper fire fighting gear and his answer was if it gets out of hand then we abandon ship. For me I would rather take my chances on a larger boat with a few burn marks on it.

    Thanks for your comment Steef.
  • Hi Jack,

    one part of our company is providing trainings for crew on seagoing and inshore vessels. The lack of safety on the "Rhine passenger vessels" is sometimes frightening.

    I teach a lot of sailors in Breathing device operator, which is compulsary for those ships. We found out, that estimated 10 fires occur on board per year, which have to be extinghuished by professional fire men. 8 of 10 fires start in the engine room.
    Can you imagine the amount of small fires, which are not even counted?
    The ships sail with an average of 150 passengers, whom of which are very often US citizens, spending their holiday in Europe.
    This means that approximately 1.500 passengers are in danger per year!
    Not a nice thought...

    With kind regards,

    Steef
  • J.Popilsky, Very smart decision. My students oppose this question to me, "If the company I work for is mismanaged, ignores safety, operates with faulty equipment; should I continue working for the company because the pay is good and the experience would look good on my resume?" I always say to the student, "How much is your license worth?"

    I almost applied to work for Majestic back when the company was called American Steamboat Co. It was a better company back then from what I heard. When Majestic bought out ASC and a few other boats, its been going down hill ever since. I ended up getting hired with a small company that recently started doing tours on the Columbia River. The owner was also the operator of the vessel so he saw at first hand how things worked and took steps to make the job safer. He always adjusted the itinerary for weather, change in lock schedules, bus tours, etc. The passengers never knew the differences and where always happy with their trips. The ship only moved during the day and docked at night so the passengers would not miss anything and also get a good nights sleep on a quite boat. Many at times on my night watch I could always hear the paddle wheel boats grind there way up river before I would even see them. I know of a another large company that does a similar schedule and they are able to keep a near perfect safety record and give the passengers a great cruise. So I know it can be done.

    I know of some good mates and other crew that work on a few Majestic boats. I hope someday they see the light and do what you did. Just walk away. I people I feel really sorry for is the passengers that go on board not knowing the history of Majestic.

    Maybe someday the owners of Majestic will wise up and learn that there are better ways to run a cruise company ( yea who am I kidding here). Better yet, someone offer to buy out Majestic and start all over.
  • J. Popilsky
    Jack,Worked for Majestic for short time ,extremely mismanaged with emphasis on making itinerary and screw the safety. Had to walk away to preserve since of pride and to preserve my license and career.
  • admin
    Jack,

    I've never been aboard a Majestic ship but the response from the Empress of the North incident on our forum makes it pretty clear your comments are spot on.
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