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EXCLUSIVE: Pictures from Greek cruise ship disaster taken ON the ship!
picasaweb.google.com — A rare glimpse into some of the events that transpired on board the Greek cruise ship Sea Diamond while it was sinking near the Aegean island of Santorini last week. The pictures were taken by one of my best friends, who was on board with his mother.
sliderocity- 1160 diggs
- digg it
- blurryfingers, on 10/12/2007, -1/+206They all look petrified...
- Akaji, on 10/12/2007, -173/+8I think you would too, if you were on a massive cruise ship that was sinking into the ocean. You know what happens when that thing goes under? Water vortex to the bottom of the ocean. Weeeeeeee!
Edit: To the OP, and all other submitters -- please stop the growing trend of "EXCLUSIVE BREAKING AMAZING (w/VIDEO)" stories. - CthulhuDawn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+69My neighbor was actually on this ship. She said that safety efforts went smoothly and that she never feared for her life. However, it was still devastating to lose everything she took with her except for the clothes on her back.
- KMye, on 10/12/2007, -1/+43@Akaji
Try looking at the pictures before commenting and/or get some new batteries for your sarcasm detector.
I'd agree w/your 2nd point but for the fact that these pictures are exclusive. Two swings and misses, I guess. - Akaji, on 10/12/2007, -38/+15Ouch. I need to be "RTFA"'d badly.
- sofaKing812, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17Yeah, I loved the smiles.
- carguy84, on 10/12/2007, -5/+19RUN away from this guy....
http://picasaweb.google.com/sliderocity/CruiseShipPictures/photo#5052221754530601794 - kinesis8, on 10/12/2007, -0/+52The photographer:
"You're on a sinking ship. Say cheese!" - yourmom, on 10/12/2007, -23/+7My dad got remarried on a cruise in January, I was there. On the first afternoon, we had to do an evacuation drill. These pictures look sorta like that, just... tilted.
- dolemite5005, on 10/12/2007, -10/+4Damnit yourmom, you made me log in just to digg you down. I'm guessing doing the standard evacuation drill is nothing like being on a ship that's actually sinking.
- MajorD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+23I wouldn't feel too comfortable checking on my upcoming vacation and seeing this...
http://www.gate1travel.com/cruises/ships/louis_SeaDiamond.htm - marcuschi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5well.. as long as you had time to take like 50 pictures
- diabolicdiablo, on 10/12/2007, -10/+6This is what it must have been like on the Titanic.
- noreturn, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8"You know what happens when that thing goes under? Water vortex to the bottom of the ocean. Weeeeeeee!"
Yeah, you may not want to get your "scientific facts" concerning sinking boats from Titanic. There is no such vortex (you should probably look that word up, too) or sucking of any kind (other than the metaphorical) when any ship sinks. - digg-dugg, on 10/12/2007, -5/+35Am I the only one who thought it said Geek cruise ship disaster?
- ryanworrell, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2@ Digg-Dugg
I thought the exact same thing. I am like oh they must have a t3 on board or something. lol - SMITHN4, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2Holy ***** I was on that Ship in June of last year taking a cruise of the Greek Islands, Wow now I need a drink...
- rrasco, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2anyone else feel it appropriate how some of the safety floating devices said POSIDON 18 on them? lol...
- professorChaos, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@ Akaji
dont you watch mythbusters
Myth BUSTED!!! - FongoBongo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1@blurryfingers
the hell are you talking about...did you not see the random Scandinavian guy smiling in every other picture?
...."COOL the ***** is sinking! I should smile!"
- Akaji, on 10/12/2007, -173/+8I think you would too, if you were on a massive cruise ship that was sinking into the ocean. You know what happens when that thing goes under? Water vortex to the bottom of the ocean. Weeeeeeee!
- sliderocity, on 10/12/2007, -4/+98Here is his "brief" account of the events that transpired that day:
This is my story, chronologically, exactly as I remember it. It contains only what I saw with my own eyes. I could make it fantastically more interesting with second-hand accounts of lost wedding rings, exploding jacuzzis, soaring lifeboats, reunited families, etc., but it would fill tomes. Besides, I can't deny others the chance to tell their own tales!
I woke up. It was my 21st birthday. I'd been taking a nap, and it was mid-afternoon. My mother, Linda, was at the door to our cabin, which was a tiny room on the port side of the second deck, the lowest passenger deck, (even before the incident, waves crashed well above our porthole.) There had just been a terrible rending sound, about 5 seconds in duration. The ship seemed to be slightly tilting, but not much more than it would in a sharp turn. “Bobby, get up, I think we're sinking.”
My mother opened the door. It burst inwards to reveal a roaring wind-tunnel rushing past to the left, towards the front of the boat, with little bits of paper or plaster flying past. The only analogy I can give is that of a depressurizing airplane. There were two distinct explosions, a fraction of a second apart, each with its respective hot pressure-wave. My mind did not go to my cell phone, PSP, camera, or even glasses. It went to my sweatshirt, on the shelf above my bed. I grabbed it, pulled my shoes on, and leaped to the door.
We each snatched our life vests from the closet, dashed towards the ornate staircase, and began climbing to the third deck. My life vest was tucked in my elbow, and my mother's was in her hand. We were both body-checked on the first half-flight of stairs, I'm not sure by whom. My mom's life jacket was knocked from her hand, she tipped forward, but ran with her momentum to keep from falling. We left it behind. As we turned around to climb the second flight, she called a warning to a paralyzed group of students that there was water rushing down the hallway.
There could not have been a greater disparity between the second and third decks. It was just like waking up from a bad dream. While there was a general murmuring about the tilt of the ship, people were continuing to drink, smoke, play cards, and chat. One of the several high-school groups on board was walking towards the downwards staircase, and staring at my life vest. I shouted at them not to go down because that the second deck was flooding, and continued dashing upwards. Aside from our urgent warnings to the few staff and passengers that we encountered, the climb to the 8th deck (the evacuation deck,) was uneventful, though increasingly difficult due to the ever-listing ship.
We were the very first people to either of the muster stations on the port (uphill) side. We recalled being instructed during our emergency drill more than three days earlier that there were additional life jackets at the muster stations. We lifted and kicked off the seats to every bench starting from the stern side, only to find almost all of them vacant. The only one with contents was full of child-sized vests. The main throughway was extremely slippery at the point where the outdoor pool had spilled over, so for quite a long while we remained there to caution and help people who were running past and often falling. The angle of the deck was strong enough that even their small slips knocked them down. Using our modest Spanish, we warned the Spanish-only speaking passengers as well.
It was at this point, roughly 20 minutes after the initial collision, that the first three announcements came over the public address system, in English only. This was significant, as prior announcements during the cruise had been in English, Spanish, and French. The announcements were a warning that the water doors on decks 2 and 3 would be closing, and an admonition to stand clear. It was also stated that we should not return to our cabins, that we should move to the life boats, and that the situation was “under control.” The third commanded all crew to report to the second and third decks for a search.
The boat was slowly rotating in circles, and appeared to be moving towards the island. Several large barrels from our ship were in the water. I saw one open barrel that was surrounded by floating life jackets. Nonetheless, at this point everybody seemed to have life vests, which were thankfully in sudden abundance. The increasingly large crowd on the port deck pressed us away from the slippery bench are and towards the rail. Unable to move well, we began taking pictures and sending text messages to family members.
By this point, a small flotilla of at least 12 small duty-free and fishing boats had neared the ship, along with two cruise ships, a ferry, and a large barge just a bit farther away. The first news helicopters had arrived. Shortly thereafter, roughly 4 military helicopters were visible. Ropes were tied from our ship to tugboats, and quickly became taut. I wondered about their purpose in moving our vessel while passengers were still on it. The crowd on the deck thinned slightly, and I moved towards the rear of the ship, to see the other side. I was shocked to find our starboard side roughly three meters from the volcanic island, at the height of the 8th deck. Others were taking notice of this as well, and we presumed that we were actively being towed away from a potentially catastrophic collision. The distance to the sheer rock face became steady, but I returned to the port side nonetheless.
Mothers with young children were painstakingly shepherded towards lifeboats, but then there was a distinct lull in noticeable activity. After quite some time, the remaining women and children were led to the front stairway down to the inclined portion of the third deck. My mother went with them, and I stayed on the eighth deck with people whom staff selected for (relative) agility, though not exclusively males, as there were several teenage girls among us. Eventually, we were told to wet the electronic leads of our vests to turn their emergency lights on. Many of us were left with only spitting as a means of doing so. Over the course of more than half an hour, we slowly walked single file down five decks with only the lights of our vests lighting the way through darkness.
When I reached the hatch on the upwards side, military personnel firmly but carefully pushed me down a rope ladder, and I found myself in a duty-free boat. The atmosphere was defiantly upbeat, as at the time we were unaware of any casualties. I noticed the distinctive dreadlocks of a wonderful pair of Argentinian sisters that I'd met days earlier, and went to sit with one of them and her mother. The first thing they did was get the entire boat to sing me “happy birthday.” I could only grin like an idiot.
I am tremendously thankful for and amazed with the effective assistance of the Greek military, the cruise personnel, the crews of the other boats, and all of the other people who saw us out safely. My thoughts are--and will continue to be--with the Allain family.- Akaji, on 10/12/2007, -0/+47That's a hell of a 21st birthday...
- Blizzardman, on 10/12/2007, -5/+39We are still doing that women first BS? What ever happened to equality?
- dogwal, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Wow, I hope you weren't drinking heavily in celebration of your 21st bday and can vividly remeber this experience... Something you will look back on and tell your grandkids someday!
- BluKnight, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Nice recap on the event. Anyone know what caused this or have a a link to the news article?
- Jennifurret, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4Evolutionary speaking, saving women is the better bet. Women can bear children, while men cannot (obviously). It's ingrained in our brain to want to save women first.
- BluKnight, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I found this if anyone is interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Diamond
- americanuck, on 10/12/2007, -12/+46Buried as inaccurate, those pictures didn't justify the use of an exclamation point or the word disaster in the title. I was excited to see destruction and carnage. Now I don't know what to believe.
- ThinkBox, on 10/12/2007, -2/+20That's not all that's wrong...
The words EXCLUSIVE ≠ digg. If its on digg... then it was somewhere else first - UCFmethod, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Dugg for a link to google web albums. That site can't possible be affected by digg effect, so way to go!
- ThinkBox, on 10/12/2007, -2/+20That's not all that's wrong...
- theblueprint, on 10/12/2007, -1/+31Are you sure you linked to the correct photoset?
- crashflow, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10"You know why they put oxygen masks on planes? Oxygen gets you high. In a catastrophic emergency, you're taking giant panicked breaths. Suddenly you become euphoric, docile. You accept your fate. It's all right here. Emergency water landing - 600 miles an hour. Blank faces, calm as Hindu cows."
i know its not a plane crash. but the pictures just reminded me of the quote.
- crashflow, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10"You know why they put oxygen masks on planes? Oxygen gets you high. In a catastrophic emergency, you're taking giant panicked breaths. Suddenly you become euphoric, docile. You accept your fate. It's all right here. Emergency water landing - 600 miles an hour. Blank faces, calm as Hindu cows."
- HoosbinPharteen, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2Ya it looks so scary being on a sinking ship not far from shore........................not titanic enough!
- BunnieLebowski, on 10/12/2007, -6/+2I don't know...most of the people seem to be happy or laughing in these pictures.
- manmademark, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9I'd be pretty happy about it too, concidering shore is 1/2 a mile away and the weather looks fairly pleasant. Don't you remember fire drills back in high school or been through a hurricane? Same sort of fun
- huckmank, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9Sinking 50 yards from shore probably isn't that terribly scary.
- JoeyDeacon, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2If you have every been to Santorini then you woudl realise that actually it woudl be pretty scary. The caldera where I beleive the ship went down is shere rock face all around and the water is extremely deep. See how the enormous liner completely disapeared under the water when only a few meters from shore.
- grooviekenn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+23I wonder if everyone had smiles as the Titanic was sinking.
joking aside...
I really can't think of anything worst than to be the captain of a sinking ship with a bunch of people who think it's all a big joke.- Fhionnlaoch, on 10/12/2007, -1/+20Betting than being captain of a sinking ship with all the passengers panicking, though.
- th3space, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6My god, that looks fun! How much was that ride, anyway?
- anctony, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1I heard just today on a radio station that this was his first time to be captain of a ship. Real time.
- SerifTheRobot, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1Helicopters are awesome.
- blastin311, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Smile! The boat is sinking.
- CapeKid, on 10/12/2007, -3/+21Why is there no picture of the guy playing violin while the ship sinks?
I was lead to believe that all cruise ships have one specifically for that purpose. - aprocter, on 10/12/2007, -7/+8My girlfriend went on a cruise on the Sea Diamond (the ship that sank) a couple weeks before this happened.
... just uh, thought I'd throw that in there.- professorChaos, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6digg user has girlfriend buried as innacurate
- shadeofgreen, on 10/12/2007, -20/+3How is that a disaster.
"Oh no I lost everything! I'll have to...shop. Which is probably what I spend a good amount of time doing anyway. seeing as how I can afford a cruise. What will I ever do...besides buy more stuff. Which is what I do a lot of."- techweenie1, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15dude just because people go on cruises doesn't mean they have dollars flowing from every orifice of their bodies...losing valuables sucks...it'll cost money to replace them, perhaps money that isn't as readily available for these people as you think....although it's not as horrible as something like the Titanic, it still is a disaster, give these people a break man.
- dbug, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5I would think that most of these losses are covered by some kind of insurance. But I could be wrong.
- betterth, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Forgetting of course, that the wealthy elite don't drive profits for cruise companies, it's the joe shmoes who save up for months to afford it.
If you weren't retarded, you'd know the wealthy elite own yachts and would never do something as "plebian" as a cruise. =P
- twertyto, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2MILF!
- kaffein, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2They look so terrified...
- anctony, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5Sea Diamond? Thats a stupid name. Should have called it Ocean Rrock..
- aprocter, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I don't know why you're getting dugg down, I just burst out laughing in the middle of a lecture.
- digital, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I knew the actors in the movie Titanic were over dramatic!
- dyzlexiK, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2For one, how is this exclusive? Exclusive to what? Digg? If so, what stops someone from posting it elsewhere?
Second, not all of us heard about this, so someone want to link to an article on what happened? I read the story above, but it doesnt exactly say what happened. - gravelocity, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Thats not a shipwreck, it's Disney's new ride called "Shipwreck Adventure"
- inkydvd, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Nice comment sliderocity. Maybe in 100 years your comments will find its way to some maritime history journal
- dbug, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Maybe in 100 years you will have learnt how to use the reply button :P
- jonmills, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2Dugg...for use of PicasaWeb!
- MrSunshine, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1Buried for sensationalist title.
- ClearNed, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2I can't believe no-one picked up on the fact that the rescue boat's name was Posidon (Poseidon).
- gaspy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9Considering that Poseidon is the Greek god of sea, I'm pretty sure it's one of the most common ship name... sort of like pointing out that someone's name is 'John' or 'Smith'.
- riah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6This guy looks ready for the worst:
http://picasaweb.google.com/sliderocity/CruiseShipPictures/photo#5052221831840013570 - SLYK, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1this doesn't make me happy. my girlfriend is on a cruise.
and i've got one coming up this summer... - ThePotatoe, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2[the Captain is trying to keep the passengers calm in the dining room after the ship is knocked over]
Captain Michael Bradford: Now we're not sure exactly what happened here, but our best guess is that we were struck by what is known as a rogue wave. They are rare, they are unpredictable, and they are lethal, Now the good news. The instant this ship was struck, emergency GPS locater beacons were launched, so we are at most, several hours from rescue.
[People start panicking, a few people ask if the ship is sinking]
Captain Michael Bradford: Please, do yourselves a favor. Follow the directions of my officers, and stay calm. This room is a giant air bubble holding up the ship. Once these bulkhead doors are sealed, we will be safe from gas leaks, fire, and flooding. We will be saved. - Greeneemer, on 10/12/2007, -5/+4Det är faktiskt jag som är kapten på den här båten!
- miccet, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Haha klockrent. R.I.P Freja.
- sirdaz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2If only I could understand that.
- philz, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6I fired up google, and all I found is a Swedish video site showing the difference between Swedish and British Nightclubs:
http://bubblare.se/svenska_vs_brittiska_nattklubbar/ (prolly NSFW)
Knowing digg, hot girls are always on topic :D - dojonz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2This man speaks the truth!
- RoscoB, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Ok, now that I've seen the pics of Swedish vs. English girls I have some questions... 1). Why does any male from Sweden leave Sweden? 2). How much is a plane ticket to Sweden 3). .... PLEASE (for the sake of my bank account) tell me that some exclusive hot models only kinda club and that's not the average girl...
- grendel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10I have got to get away more often...particularly a cruise.
Hell even when it's sinking people look like they are still having a blast. - Ethelstan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0
Considering all the smiles and joy seen in the picture... I'm very curious on how it really felt to be on a sinking boat. It looked to me more of like a party bash than an unfortunate disasters
I wouldnt assume they would be as cheerful had they been in Titanic in the midst of freezing atlantic ocean + no gps + no rescue. - prkchpsndwiches, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Anyone read "Geek" cruise ship by accident?
- rbowes, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3YES, I spent a while trying to figure out what a geek cruise was.
- wakkow, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1They're educational: http://www.geekcruises.com/
- shafeeq, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1they are just following guidelines.
No.1)Remain Calm
No.2)Don't Panic
No.3)If Everything Is Becoming Worser. Forget About No.1 And No.2. - jellygraph, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1er... wth... these photos suck. If i didn't know better, this could have been from any cruise holiday. There isn't a hint of disaster or anything.
- finbec, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1You mean like the tons of life jackets, Sherlock.
- tahillia, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Or the tilting water in the pool...
- redwoodtree, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1compare those pictures to this story:
http://www.10news.com/news/11592666/detail.html
Hmph..who knows..- Paladin27, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Looks like someone is exaggerating their story. Those photos show a calm evacuation and excellent crew support.
- SteelChicken, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3the woman in that story sounds like a whiney exxagerating bitch.
- ed89, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Pictures from a distance of the ship sinking please.
- dontdiggthis, on 10/12/2007, -3/+0point is....NEVER take a Greek cruise. they are a 24x7 drunken bunch.
- there, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2 You equate Greece's large tourist industry and festive atmosphere with alcoholism but Greeks themselves are moderate consumers of alcohol (especially compared to most other European nations) Aside from the fact you shouldn't be making negative stereotypes like that... you really should consider investigating the actual facts
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/foo_alc_con-food-alcohol-consumption-current
- there, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2 You equate Greece's large tourist industry and festive atmosphere with alcoholism but Greeks themselves are moderate consumers of alcohol (especially compared to most other European nations) Aside from the fact you shouldn't be making negative stereotypes like that... you really should consider investigating the actual facts
- Metaridley, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1And there go the "pics or it didn't happen" people.
- sliderocity, on 10/12/2007, -0/+31. The pictures weren't anywhere else first, considering he gave them directly to me, and I uploaded them to Picasa.
2. Yes, they're real. You're a retard if you think otherwise. I'm not that desperate to get on the Digg front page, believe it or not.
3. Of course everybody's calm. If you did your homework, you'd read that the ship took an incredibly long time to sink, and thus the passengers and crew had adequate time in which to conduct a calm, coordinated evacuation. You would also know that of a compliment of over 1600, only two people died.
4. Personally, I think an entire cruise ship sinking, ruining a thousand vacations and taking everybody's clothing, souvenirs, cameras, and other memories down with it qualifies as a "disaster".
Anything else?
- sliderocity, on 10/12/2007, -0/+31. The pictures weren't anywhere else first, considering he gave them directly to me, and I uploaded them to Picasa.
- jpza, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Obviously we're accepting a very wide definition of the word "disaster."
- reifeltower, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2What were they like 20 yards from the shore?
Jump and swim and be done with it... - thefaithful, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Everyone is smiling...?
- nklepper, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yeah. I read geek as well....ahh....Im doing a Semester At Sea in the Fall! This makes me nerrrrvous.
- mogdor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1They look like they're waiting in line for Splash Mountain or something, these people definitely aren't the "glass is half-empty" type.
- sporg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1When you are on vacation and the boat sinks half the people are basted and dont care. The other half are thinking "Thank god I dont have to go back to my ***** job" so they dont care either.
- naisanza, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1they seem to have left all their baggage back on the ship. what would you do if your computer had been left in your room?
oh wait i just realized something. nevermind.. - mandarin, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Whats with the insane smiling? The ship is sinking and they look like they're in front of a buffet table...
- jimb12345, on 10/03/2008, -0/+0what great footage...get great free cruise information at
http://www.myspassos.com
Check out the new & improved 
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