Cruise ships breaking from mooring lines

[Cornelis]

CRUISE SHIPS BREAKING FROM MOORING LINES

This is a very dangerous situation for guest, crew, and cruise ship.

These day's these vessels are hugh and wind catchers

The mooring lines are of course made of material which can handle safe mooring.

But, when strong winds appear they are like big sails and the mooring are getting under high pressure and can break.

What if guests are just using the gangway, or what dammage can ocuure when the ship is sailing away not under control.

The cruise industry is a muly miljon business  involving a lot of money.

But pressing the ports of call for better reliable mooring systems : It looks that nobody is interested, while safety has high standards on cruise lines.

In our port of Rotterdan we already have solved the problem with a fantastic invention.

The largest container ships of the world, who moore in our always very windy ports near the sea, are moored now with a Dutch invention, which keep mooring lines at place , alway's what ever the weather is.

The last breaking of mooring lines from a Cunard cruise ship, which lucky had no victims is an example : You can make the ships as big as you can, but secure the mooring lines like we do in Rotterdam do not break, and the system is there.

Cornelis Kloppenburg

photomaassluis@gmail.com

[PaulB]

I agree that something needs to be done as there have been a few instances recently with the same problems. On those occasions the gangway ended up in the water as the wind pushed the ship away, and as @Cornelis has rightly said, there could have been passengers on that and that doesn't bear thinking about. I am surprised in today's age, that there hasn't been anything designed or put in place to prevent this from happening. I would like to see the invention that you've described because in the health and safety mad world we live in now, that could be invaluable.

[LukeJ]

I tend to agree with @PaulB, it's the ports duty and responsibility to put things in place to prevent any incidents from occurring. It may only be rare that this happens, but if someone was walking on that and it went, that one occasion could prove fatal.

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@Cornelis I totally agree! Mooring systems are significantly important to the overall safety of ships. Why is this that not all cruise lines are using this enhanced system such as the mooring lines at the port of Rotterdam? I'm assuming that it's due to the cost, but I'm not very knowledgeable about the most efficient mooring materials.

@LukeJ I'm all about safety first. I agree that this matter is worth investing in if it's going to keep guests safe and secure. I would hate for a fluke incident to occur and it ends tragically.

Edited August 21, 2023 by Kendall James-Vargas

[LukeJ]

We tend to think of costs, but surely the system used in the port of Rotterdam can't be that expensive in the grand scheme of things. 

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@LukeJ I agree about the idea of cost. I'm sure that eventually, cruise lines will catch on to this enhanced system if it's truly worthwhile!

[kefthecruiser]

Calling all you techies - I found this on the Internet and believe it is what @Cornelis is referencing.

cavotec.com/moormaster

It uses vacuum pads along the ship's length to hold the ship in place. Very interesting to this engineer, think massive automated & sophisticated suction cups! No more mooring lines.

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@kefthecruiser Thanks for giving us a bit more context! That's extremely interesting and sounds so practical. I would be so interested to see this system in action. I wonder how much these intricate and powerful suction cups would cost. Soon enough I bet mooring lines will be a thing of the past. I'm questioning the strength and longevity of this new system. 

[kefthecruiser]

@Kendall James-Vargas All excellent points, you have an engineer's curiosity. (That's a compliment from this retired engineer.) The system is certainly relying on the ship's paint layer to be strongly bonded to the steel hull and the area to be relatively flat. 

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@kefthecruiser That is a super compliment to me! I usually am not much of an engineer-minded person so I appreciate it. I like the idea of modernizing the system as moorings have been around for such a long time. There have been incidents where they break and it can be very dangerous. I'm curious how this alternate system would work with rising tides. If it's suction-based then if the tides go up could the suction pose an issue? The waters go up and the boat doesn't rise along with it. I see that potentially becoming an issue. Another potential is that the suction shifts upwards with the rise in water levels but then gets to a point where the suction releases above the area it was initially attached to. What do you think about that? 

[kefthecruiser]

If I did this right, this YouTube video shows the system in operation (annoying music!):

Around 1:55 it shows how the system repositions with changing tides as the ship rises (one pad at a time). It's rather complex and sophisticated to sense all that. Pretty wild!

[LukeJ]

@Kendall James-Vargas get designing. I'm sure you will make a fortune in no time

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@kefthecruiser The music was very commercialized sounding. I actually wasn't expecting it to be this sophisticated. There must be loads of sensors on that thing. It's high-tech, aka probably pretty expensive to install and service. 

@LukeJ I happen to love designing! I guess I enjoy decor the most. Angles and math aren't my forte but maybe a partnership would work. I do know how to make things stylish!

[LukeJ]

Engineering is an art in itself. I love looking at something and thinking what a fantastic design, to then finding out that design hasn't only been designed to make it look stylish but for an actual purpose. Especially the older designs, I believe the engineering brain were more advanced .

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@LukeJ Yes functional design is also my favorite! One of my favorite functional designs onboard some cruise ships is the little lookout porthole windows on lower decks that have a deep lip for a seat. Do you know what I'm referring to? They are the best photo ops! 

@Cornelis Speaking of mooring lines breaking, P&O Cruises just had this happen, and Britannia collided with a tanker! I really think this suction system is looking better and better by the minute. 

[LukeJ]

@Kendall James-Vargas the deep lip in portholes are a good idea actually. I can see that being functional 

[Kendall James-Vargas]

@LukeJ My kids always enjoy jumping in them and using them as a viewing area/seat. They also let natural light in! I also love the design of some onboard pool wading areas. For instance, on my recent MSC Seascape cruise, there were a few little splash areas that served my family really well! They keep you cool, are great for little swimmers/splashers, and are very visually appealing.