Captain makes terrifying announcement on cruise
Passengers on the Sea Princess, a round-the-world cruise that set sail from Sydney, have had their world turned upside down by a terrifying announcement from the captain.
Writing for News.com.au, media specialist Carolyne Jasinski described the moment the captain of the ship told passengers they must prepare for a pirate attack.
“When 1900 passengers set sail from Sydney on a world cruise, they had no idea for 10 of their 104 days at sea, there would be a dusk-til-dawn ban on any fun on deck,” she writes.
“Captain Gennaro Arma addressed the ship. He apologised for alarming passengers. However, the threat, he said, was real and the ship must be prepared for a pirate attack.”
While most people on a cruise won’t consider piracy unless they find a copy of Treasure Island in the library, it’s a very real threat and one, as Jasinski explains, the crew take very seriously.
Jasinski explains, “It was made very clear on the Sea Princess, very quickly, that this pirate threat was not something to be joked about.
“Any remaining smirks soon disappeared as the pirate drill alarm sounded and the crew was instructed to move to their designated muster stations.
“Passengers were sent back to their cabins so they could be counted.
“For the purpose of the drill, they needed only to remain there and be crossed off a list by their stateroom attendants.
“They were advised to sit on the floor and to hang on to hand rails in case the ship had to manoeuvre away from pirate ships.”
As a precautionary measure, the captain enforced a 10-day blackout on night-time entertainment, and the level of tension on the ship quickly rose.
She writes, “For the 10-day blackout, there was a weird kind of excitement. Once aware of and alerted to the prospect of pirates, we watched vessels more carefully.
“A fishing boat was not looked at the same way. It was no longer an interesting speck on the horizon. We wondered what they were doing so far out at sea and whether there was something hiding behind it.”
Have you ever had something strange happen on a cruise?