Two eye witnesses who were working on the ship during the storm shared their memories , thank you so much for contacting us!
Arline Daniels Welch, Cocktail Pianist remembers:
The most vivid memory I have of the May ’87 storm is sitting in for librarian June Applebee so that she could have a brief break. While I sat at her desk in the swivel chair on wheels, the ship pitched and I rolled right out of the library! I couldn’t stop the ride until I reached the doorway and was able to grab a piece of wall. I wasn’t hurt, just dazed and a bit disoriented for a few seconds by the suddenness and speed of the trip. The library was in shambles with nearly every book thrown off the shelves.
June Applebee, Librarian, quotes from her diary:
I remember turning on the water in her cabin and seeing it come out at a right angle to the tap. A passenger fell and smashed his nose outside of the library and two windows had blown in, one in the Grand Lounge and one in the Mauritania restaurant. The most frightening thing that happened to me was nearly having a photocopier fall on me in the Purser’s office but luckily some nearby staff members saved me from serious injuries. The computer in the library fell on the floor as well. While I was scrabbling on the floor in an attempt to clear up the mess of books and potted plants, a passenger, totally oblivious to the chaos and June’s plight, demanded a copy of the daily quiz.
Please click on the photo below to visit the new feature page. On the home page select ‘Storm Aftermath Aboard QE2 1987’.
If you were on the ship at the time, as crew member or passenger I’d love to hear from you: Where have you been when the waves hit the ship, what were you doing? If you can remember, please share your memories by leaving a comment on the post or drop me a line using the ‘Contact Me’ form.
I was on the ship with my dad and two half brothers. I was in the cabin, fourth floor down first thing in the morning. My dad was upstairs having breakfast and said he was having kippers and his plate slid off the table, then the table slid across the room. At that point he ran down to get us….. His grandfather, my great grandfather had been a helmsman on board the Lusitania when it was torpedoed at the beginning of the first world war. He had been below deck so didnt stand a chance of survival but the knowledge of that would have sent a strong warning chill for my dad. I remember smashed windows, people being sick and running up the stairs to head for the lifeboats.
Hi there. I am thrilled to find the reports of the May 1987 QE2 transatlantic storm crossing. I was on board at the age of 23 on the return of a roundtrip from Southampton to NY with. 2 night stop at the Waldorf Astoria. The crossing back was said to be the roughest in 15 years. I fully recall the piano in the Queen lounge picture on your web-site, but when I saw it it was wedged in the entrance doors to the Q lounge on its side- then later I saw it strapped upside down. I heard that the white piano with the glass legs jumped off the legs and was badly damaged, but I didn’t see it for myself.
I have some memorabilia in a scrapbook of that trip including a bar-graph of the storm provided to passengers by Cunard printed in a menu folder. I also have an official cunard photo of the forward bow crashing through waves taken from the bridge camera. I was very ill myself and had a jab to help me sleep and relieve sea sickness. I recall the constant 45 degree list to port and breakfast time when the ship rolled on its port side after a huge wave. I had carpet burns to show for it! I have other vivid memories and it have read your recollection with interest Karen.
I am an enthusiast and saved up to go on that trip, and have since been on many, in fact just returned last week from Queen Elizabeth Med cruise. I also did 30 nights of QM2’s world cruise this year (2013) from Southampton to Singapore in Princess Grill.
Paul
Paul, I would love to see the photos that you mentioned. Seems like I wasn’t the youngest solo passenger. Did you ever find your way to the ping pong tables? Check out my post.
I was there and have some photos.
Pretty scary
I remember my experience of the May 27th, 1987 sailing of the QE2 vividly. I had traveled from LA to NYC on what was to be a 6 week adventure. I traveled solo on a “shared cabin” rate. Turns out there was not only was I not assigned room mate but I was upgraded to a suite. I have some pictures including one with the Captain from the first or 2nd night when he announced “Fair Weather Sailing Ahead”. After an uneventful departure I soon discovered the ping pong table and made some new friends (thankfully). It would have been a longer, scarier trip had it not been for the comraderie.
Next thing I recall was watching a hypnotist who was the evening’s entertainment. As is customary he had passengers sitting in chairs (I think it was a dance floor vs a stage) following his suggestions. It was then the the listing began and the show continued with the him telling the participants that they were in calm seas. The audience was trying to keep from falling over each other but low and behold those under the trance had no difficulty sitting tight without movement.
The next morning I was getting a massage at the Golden Door Spa. It was certainly rocky when I got on the table but the masseur nor I would have been prepared for what happened next. There was a very loud noise. He quietly excused himself and when he returned reported that the treadmill had fallen over from one end of the gym to the other. He apologized for the distraction and contiuned to finish the massage.
As I left the gym and saw the damage, I walked into a hall where two officers were talking and overheard one saying to the other “this is the roughest seas I’ve been on!”
It became difficult to move around my own cabin. It was like walking on a 80% slope. Feeling like being with other people would be comforting I start to explore the ship and found that pianos (that were on board for a special multi grand piano concert) were turned upside down.
Not sure but I think it was the11th floor window in an open public space that was boarded up with plywood. Someone had drawn an intricate stick figure scene of the ship and people in chaos. They were still trying to serve meals in the dining room but it clearly wasn’t a normal scene. Somehow with all of the excitment I ended up in the luxury dining room. It was all about survival of the fittest. I was young and not terrible effected by the motion sickness that was prevalent. Sawdust was all over the carpets and the word was many people had been going to the doctor’s office and gettig shots
Turns out it was a terrible decision to medicate the passengers from a safety standpoint. Can’t describe why or how it was that I never thought the worst. The tragic journey of the Titanic must have occurred to me but I always believed we’d come through it…and we did. I gather it’s very rare for a ship to not keep it’s scheduled arrival time and indeed we did not arrive on time making it a newsworthy sailing. Here’s a link to one article that talks about 50 mile an hour winds. http://articles.latimes.com/1987-05-31/news/mn-9275_1_north-atlantic
If there was a theme that resonated with many, it was that the communication was lacking from the officers to the passengers who could have used a lot more direction and assurances. I don’t want to discount the fact that we did eventually make it to our destination and lucky for me I wasn’t injured. I believe not all passengers could say the same.
When I’m cruising these days (over 30 times so far) I listen to other people’s stories and decide if I’m going to bore my husband by sharing mine (the short version). I also consider the audience and situation as it’s not exactly what you want to be talking about when you’re in the midst of rocky seas.
I’m hoping the other passengers who posted previously will have a chance to comment. Was anyone there when the captain talked about the smooth sailing ahead? Anyone at the hypnotist show?
We definitely shared an experience I’d like to think won’t repeat itself!
ps.. I discovered this blog after sharing a post on a Princess Cruises passenger Facebook page about Motion Eaze (oil). It made me think back as to why I didn’t like patches of medications that would make me sleepy.
Hi Julie, what a great memory you have. I remember the hypnotist show too, I seem to remember an onion that he said was an apple and questioning my intelligence as I did not feel much effect in going under myself 😉
Wow! You were one of the 6-8 people that he put under. Do you recall the movement that had started just before the show that you didn’t feel while hypnotized? I don’t remember what he had people doing that showed they had more control that the rest of us.
How about the boarded window on the high floor?
You’re right, I remember a lot about that sailing. It was remarkable in so many ways!
Hi Julie
sorry, I wasn’t clear – I wasn’t on stage, but I recall the hypnotist saying something to the audience like we may also be affected and intelligent people had a tendency to go under better!!
Yes I can remember the stick picture on the plywood.
The most poignant thing for me/us was that my grt grandfather lost his life on a Cunard ship so dad just ran us up to the lifeboats as fast as he could and we stood outside by one in the ‘fresh’ atlantic weather! There was no way we were being drowned too!! 😉
Nice to hear from you
Karen, How old were you when you were on board? I was friendly with a family from Liverpool (father, daughter & son). Long shot but … hey… stranger things… Had to at least ask!
Can you imagine being on a lifeboat in those waters?
Hi Julie
I was 25 and with dads two younger sons (maybe about 5 or 6). Dad spent a fair bit of time in the piano bar ~ does that seem familiar? I have a photo here taken the evening of Captains reception, or whatever it was called and would post it if I could. It would be funny if you remembered us.
Definitely glad we didn’t have to go on the lifeboats. 🙂
Any chance his namei is Bill? I will also be posting pictures.
Yes, that’s him!! I wondered about the connection. He passed away 10 years ago now. I look forward to seeing your pictures, Karen
I’m so sorry to hear that you lost your dad. He was a very nice man. We staying in touch for a short while after the sailing I am also amazed that after 30 years we reconnect. I really don’t know how I got here originally but clearly the sailing of the QE2 that we shared left a significant imprint in our memory bank.
I have photos ready to share (with you in a couple). I even have one of the now infamous hypnotist show. I need a word press lesson to know how to post the pictures.
My email is julievaron@gmail.com. Julie Heller Varon on Facebook. I’d love to continue our discussion.
I was 11 at the time. My dad, mum, younger sister and I were travelling from NYC to Southampton as we were relocating back to the UK from New Jersey. I remember pianos on coasters smashing into walls and breaking up into pieces, a large window smashing near me on one of the upper decks and myself sitting in a driving video game unit in the arcade and feeling myself and the very heavy unit moving to the opposite side of the arcade as the ship listed. Adults were being thrown about by the impact of the waves, many were very seasick and queuing up for jabs if they weren’t trying to find a phone to call their lawyers back in NYC! My mum helped a member staff who was scalded by a tea urn that was thrown in the air after a wave hit. I also remember very heavy steel doors sliding open and shut in lower corridors as the ship listed – the doors were not fixed open and could have killed someone if they had been caught in between. I think it took at least 2 days extra before we docked in Southampton. I remember my dad mentioning Cunard had gone to great lengths to avoid coverage in the media and that he only saw a very small article in the Financial Times that mentioned the episode. I also recall him receiving free tickets from Cunard for another voyage on the QE2 by way of compensation but he tore them up and threw them in the bin, saying ‘there’s no bloody way we’re ever getting on that ship again!’. A very exciting if surreal experience as I was a child, but I would have been utterly petrified had I been an adult!
I was on that cruise with my ex-husband. I have never felt so sick in my life. Even after a shot for sea sickness, I thought I was going to die. We understood that this was the maiden voyage after $160+M uplift to the QE2, however the stabilizers weren’t working when we departed, or so we were told. I became sick long before the storm hit. Large picture windows busting from the pressure, kitchens closed, dishes all broken, pianos smashed against walls, glass tables in the bars shattered. Relatively like a war zone. People with compound fractures from being thrown about when the waves would hit. Of course they turned off the cameras when we started listing at 30 degrees. Waves reported as high as 37′. We were told, but not confirmed, that this voyage was the captain’s final voyage before his retirement and that he could have avoided the storm but chose to proceed through it because he liked storms. I would have to call BS on that because I cannot imagine anyone wanting to endure what we did on that cruise. We were also told that with force 10 winds in the middle of the N Atlantic in May, one could expect to survive just several minutes in the water in those conditions. I’ve taken one cruise since 1987 to the eastern Caribbean. I believe we call that PTSD.