Fire at Sea: Cruise Ship Rescue | The Last Lifeboat | 4

Against The Odds

Wondery

Cassie De Pecol, History, Society & Culture, Dolby, Mike Corey, Dolby Atmos, Atmos

4.7 • 7.2K Ratings

🗓️ 16 May 2023

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Rescue workers begin the painstakingly slow process of airlifting cruise ship evacuees one by one from their lifeboats. But a typhoon has turned the Gulf of Alaska into a raging sea, and as they await rescue, many of the passengers fear they’ll either drown or die of hypothermia. Just when rescuers think they’ve saved everyone, they realize they’ve overlooked one lifeboat. Amid rain and massive waves, and with darkness approaching, they worry they might never find it.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, Prime members, you can listen to against the odds at free on Amazon music. Download the app today.
0:15.4	Air Force Sergeant John Cassidy drapes a blanket around the trembling shoulders of an elderly woman.
0:22.1	She's soaking wet and dressed only in a silk robe. He wishes he could do more to help her,
0:28.2	but he can't stay. There are hundreds of others just like her who still need to be rescued.
0:34.2	They're on the deck of the oil tanker Williamsburg, which is here to help rescue passengers from
0:39.9	Prinsendam, a cruise ship that caught fire in the Gulf of Alaska. Cassidy is an Air Force
0:45.9	Pararaskuman and among the first professional rescuers to arrive on the scene, and from what he
0:52.0	seen so far, they've got their work cut out for them. It's 10.50 in the morning on October 4th,
0:59.7	1980. Nearly 500 of Prinsendam's passengers and crew are still adrift in lifeboats and rats
1:06.9	in the stormy seas. Helicopters hover above them, reeling them in one by one and bringing them
1:13.6	to Williamsburg. Cassidy hears his headset crackle. It's his helicopter pilot Captain John Walters.
1:22.0	Cassidy, if you've got a load of his blankets, hustle back, we've got to go.
1:26.4	Cassidy leans towards the woman, shouting to make himself heard above the rotors.
1:31.4	You're going to be okay, man. The woman gives a small nod. Cassidy turns and sprints back to the
1:38.0	chopper. It's a Sikorsky HH3E, nicknamed the jolly green giant because of its color and size.
1:46.2	He climbs into its open door, buckles himself in, and feels the helicopter take off.
1:54.0	Sitting next to Cassidy is his partner, Sergeant Jorge Rios. They're both dressed in black
1:59.6	wetsuits. Cassidy speaks into his headset. The only way Rios can hear him over the roar of the
2:05.6	chopper. Nice day for a swim. Rios grins. I know, right? Might be a little choppy though.
2:12.5	Cassidy and Rios know the forecast. The outer bands of a typhoon are just beginning to reach them.
2:19.2	That's going to make air lifting passengers from their lifeboats a challenge to say the least.
2:25.2	Rain is pounding down, and Cassidy can see the waves must be at least 15 feet.
	...

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