Emergency in the engine room, July 2008 as far as I remember?

[Thomas Hypher]

Hello everyone,

Does anyone have any further information regarding an incident I remember seeing the response to when I was at the top of the Britannia Statue boat deck stairway (can't remember the stairway letter). As far as I can remember it was in early July 2008 and involved an incident with one of the propeller shafts or a flood in the engine room. I heard the PA announcement and saw a group of senior officers (presumably engineers) rush out of the glass windowed door to a crew area at the top of said stairway and run down the stairs. The crew area being at the opposite end of the area to the Britannia Restaurant's glass doors.

I have sometimes thought about this curious incident since - that luckily didn't turn into anything major as far as I know as we heard nothing about it for the rest of the cruise apart from an announcement a short time later that everything had been sorted if I recall correctly.

Thomas

[Rod]

Have no idea what the emergency was, but that glass door would have been the Officers Wardroom, and probably the Engineers alarm went off.
The alarm tended to be a room clearing event.

[Michael Gallagher]

Talking abut clearing the Wardroom...

I was sailing with Cunard President Pam Conover in 2002 or 2003 and after dinner she asked me to take her down to the Pig. Totally out of the blue. So off me, her and her husband trotted in our formal wear. Our arrival was very similar to the scene in American Werewolf in London when the tourists entered the bar. But all OK. We got drinks and in no time the three of us were joining in the dancing. After finishing dancing to Like a Virgin, we then proceeded to Castaways next door.

Word must have been getting round that we were on our way to the Wardroom...

We got up there around half ten I think, knocked on the door and when we were invited in there were just four people in there - all trying to make out that was the norm! Pam was not daft...

Then it was back to the Yacht Club.

That was a great trip - one night one of my journalists set fire to Pam in the Golden Lion (his cigarette caught her scarf). She was very stoical about it. And I don't know who got the bigger shock when we were inspecting the refurbished communal crew showers one day. We thought they were empty...

[Rod]

Michael, when my wife first traveled we were living in Sports Deck accom. I told her that if the alarm went off, stay in the cabin do not go into the alleyway.  I heard/felt the a/c fans go off on the preference trips and woke up and got up. The alarm started and I was dressed and out!.
Did she stay in the cabin? Nope, she was greeted by the sight of maybe 26 half naked Engineers and Electricians running to the change room.

[Trevor Harris]

After finishing dancing to Like a Virgin

A 80's classic! I absolutely love the 80's. 

[Thomas Hypher]

Thank you for the extra information and stories Rod and Michael. I bet those four remaining officers felt a bit sheepish and embarrassed to say the least.

I've never seen senior officers move so fast before or since haha - in regards to the little incident we witnessed!