Tragic Accident on Queen Mary 2 (QM2)

Gangway Collapses, Killing 15 and Injuring Over 30

Fifteen people were killed November 15 and over thirty more were injured when a gangway on the new mega cruise ship the Queen Mary 2 collapsed. Most of those killed or injured were workers and their families who were touring the ship. Several of the injured were in serious condition in a local hospital. The accident occurred while the ship was at the dock in Saint-Nazaire, France, having returned earlier this week from its last sea trials. The Associated Press reported that a crowded access gangway linking the ship to the pier collapsed, dropping the victims 30-80 feet, but the cause is not yet known. The gangway had just been installed this week for the special visit by the workers' families.

Alstom Marine's Chantiers de l'Atlantique has spent two years building the $780 million, 150,000-ton ship for the British ship operator Cunard Line, which is owned by Carnival Corp. The QM2's maiden voyage is scheduled for January 12, 2004 from Southampton to Ft. Lauderdale. The ship will be named by Her Majesty the Queen (Queen Elizabeth) in Southampton on January 8.

Cunard plans for the QM2 to be its flagship, and the ship will be the longest, tallest, heaviest passenger ship ever built--377 yards long and 79 yards high (or about the heighth of a 21-story building). After spending the winter months in warm Caribbean waters, it will replace the Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) on its transatlantic route next spring. The QE2 is only 70,000 tons, so this 150,000-ton new ship will weigh over twice as much!

Over 800 companies, mostly French, have been involved in the building of the Queen Mary 2. The ship will carry over 2600 passengers on 14 decks, and about 75% of the cabins will have balconies.

President Jacques Chirac will visit the shipyard on Sunday. Social Affairs Minister Francois Fillon was at the site on Saturday night.

This ship has been highly publicized and widely-anticipated by the traveling public. The shipyard had received over 100,000 requests to tour the ship while it was under construction.