Search & Rescue Operation Called Off
for missing MS Balmoral Passenger
By Mike Groves
The SAR (Search & Rescue) operation for a missing passenger who is ‘suspected’ to have fallen from Fred Olsen’s cruise ship the MS Balmoral was called off last night
The 79-year-old unnamed male was last seen on the evening of the 10th October, the alarm only being raised the following morning when his wife woke to find her husband missing from their cabin. The couple had just completed a three-week cruise around the Adriatic and were homeward bound when a ‘man overboard’ alert (Code OSCAR) was issued from the vessel at 9.30am on Monday. The 43,000-ton Balmoral was still sailing through French waters at the time, some 45 miles off The Lizard, Cornwall when this tragic turn of events started to fully unfold.
Search called off for lost MS Balmoral Passenger
Police investigation on-going
By Mike Groves QGM
Cruise Bruise Security And Safety Advisor
October 13, 2010
MS Balmoral heads for home
I for one have given Big Fred some ear ache in the past in respect of their hygiene standards, which to be fair, have hit their fleet more than most in recent times. However at least they hit the brakes and commenced a search as soon as they were told, unlike some I don't care to mention!!
I have read with interest that this may well be the first passenger that 'Fred' has lost, if one is to believe the cruise blogs and some news articles however I for one am not sure. I know who will be though – my Cruise Bruise ‘sensei’ Jan Huggard.
Speculative position for the vessel south of The Lizard, Cornwall
However putting this initial confusion to one side, for now, a substantial SAR operation was launched by emergency services on both sides of the Channel for the missing passenger, involving HMS Westminster and another warship, a coastguard rescue helicopter, French maritime reconnaissance aircraft were also deployed together with other vessels already in the area. The latter obliged to do under maritime legislation/SOLAS.
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HMS Westminster in action
Sadly a number of cruise bloggers and some familar faces; the somewhat vehement group of supporters for the cruise industry, have already started speculating! Can I just take this opportunity to appeal to these people and ask them to reflect on their actions and take a step back! Not only are their very public statements hurtful to the immediate family of this elderly gentleman, they also lack any evidence and amount to nothing shy of unwarranted and insensitive speculation of a possible suicide?
First and foremost it is for qualified and experienced law enforcement officers to draw all available information together and then put forward 'the facts', based on the victims background and evidence through right and proper investigation. Once that is done it will then be for the coroner to pass his/her findings at the inquest, which could be a year or more from now if not before. Then and only then, will the facts in all probability be released and we will all have a better understanding of the true circumstances surrounding this tragic loss.
It may well have been suicide but equally so it may well have been yet another unnecessary incident involving poor passenger safety on board a cruise ship? If you don’t know then please leave it to the qualified amongst us to establish the full facts, rather than speculating all over the world wide web. This is for the benefit of both the deceased's family and indeed Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, who also stopped their vessel to take part in the search, a search that was later described by the coastguard as covering a vast area. The MS Balmoral later resumed her course for Dover.
Albeit reports state Balmoral’s crew made a frantic search of the ship before coastguard services were alerted, one would imagine in direct response to the ‘man overboard alert’, it would appear however that some crew on board were still unaware of the missing passenger late into the afternoon? If you view the cruise.co.uk entry below you can see the time and date of this particular posting which does confuse me somewhat? Was this guy sleeping between shifts or was the ‘customer’ who he alleges ‘just’ told him?
This posting/statement is a little bizarre, more so when a Code Oscar, Code Bravo (General Emergency) and often Code Alpha (Medical Emergency) can be heard on the ships tannoy throughout the ship from top to bottom?
