Living: A Morning to Remember

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Still, the success of the rescue did nothing to allay the concerns of experienced seamen. Said a U.S. maritime safety expert: "Something went wrong aboard that ship, something unnecessarily wrong." The Prinsendam was not equipped with a sprinkler system, but none was required because the ship was constructed with as few combustible materials as possible. It also had fire-resistant doors and insulated steel bulkheads. Maintained Gerrit Van Veen, technical director for Holland America Lines: "Even if the Prinsendam had a sprinkler system, I doubt whether this could have prevented the fire from spreading." Holland America officials contended that as the fire raged out of control, the Prinsendam performed superbly. The doors and bulkheads contained the blaze long enough to allow passengers to abandon ship. But the most disturbing question remains. If a fire can rage out of control on a ship supposedly as safe as the Prinsendam, is any cruise ship safe?

Of the 65 or so luxury liners that call at U.S. ports, few were built to standards as strict as those that governed the construction of the Prinsendam. The others were designed to meet earlier, less rigorous safety specifications and are registered in flag-of-convenience countries, such as Liberia and Panama, whose shipping regulations are not as stringent as those of The Netherlands and the U.S. Said a U.S. maritime official: "Their paint is fresh and they look nice, but a lot of them are floating firetraps."

By coincidence, the Federal National Transportation Safety Board last week issued a long-awaited report urging the Coast Guard to increase efforts "to improve fire safety on foreign cruise ships embarking American citizens at U.S. ports." The report was prepared as the result of a fire last year that destroyed the Italian ship Angelina Laura while it was docked at St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. But some experts are calling for more decisive action. Said a U.S. maritime safety expert: "Somebody ought to force these foreign flag ships to meet at least the minimal fire safety standards of the U.S. The loophole that exempts them could cost hundreds of lives. —By James Kelly. Reported by Jerry Hannifin/Washington and Gavin Scott/San Francisco