MSC Cruises organised a crisis management drill on board MSC Lirica as she was cruising off the coast of Oman, on Monday 31 March.
The drill saw the involvement of close to 2,500 people between the crew members, the employees ashore and the passengers on board the ship.
This was an unannounced emergency drill, in order to test threat assessments, reactions and emergency procedures both at sea and ashore. Strict safety procedures were followed and no one’s life was put at risk during the exercise.
The emergency drill took the form of a piracy attack that consisted in individuals aboard a skiff approaching MSC Lirica and firing upon her in an attempt to board the ship. As per standard usage, and following the pre-established scenario, the Master raised the alarm and took evasive manoeuvres to avoid being boarded by the pirates and immediately reached the competent personnel at MSC as well as at the International Maritime Bureau’s Piracy Reporting Centre.
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MSC Cruises, April 10, 2014