Thursday we were docked in our homeport; Oslo, Norway. We had to sanitize the entire ship, again. There was a meeting in the morning, so that the Captain, Hotel Director, and Staff Captain could answer any questions crew had. It was supposed to make us feel like we had a say in the situation, I think. Our questions were direct, we just weren’t happy with the answers. When the Captain stated that the doctors are immune to GI, I raised my hand to respectfully disagree. I told him that it is a virus and therefore has strands that are mutating. To think that anybody is immune to it is absurd. A person who gets GI once can get it several times after, as Brandon has shown in this contract alone. He argued that he knows that the doctors are immune because they are constantly exposed. My theory: they wash their hands because that kills the virus. WOW, common sense.
I have been working on a report from the research I have done on this virus and I plan on sending it in to the Power of One, where the company takes ideas and installs the ones that will improve the ships. But at this point I don’t even care about a reward, I’m just sick of sanitizing when the entire process is contradictory and useless. And the company just spent a large sum of money on a new “chemical” and machines to spray the air and sanitize it. Ok, the ship is sparkling clean, just like the last time. But that time failed and why? Because the guests bring on the virus, and then spread it around. Like I have been saying since the beginning, use the money to invest in sinks and hot water; hire bathroom attendants, and require guests to wash their hands. Then NONE of these other processes would be necessary.
The worst part was when they announced early in the morning that they were coming to fog all crew cabins. They did not inform us of the things we need to put away so they aren’t sprayed, like technology. I didn’t want to risk anything so I hid my laptop, but what if I hadn’t thought of that. They also didn’t inform us of what is in the chemical, how long we need to stay out of our rooms, etc. Several people had eye irritations or other reactions to the chemical and I know that Jade and Sam took naps in masks because they could taste it in their rooms. When we asked about it at the meeting, guess what they told us. The chemical is completely safe, you can DRINK IT! Ya, ok. But when you look at the bottle, it says 1% other chemicals. I DON’T WANT TO DEAL WITH ANY PERCENT NONLABELED OR UNKNOWN CHEMICALS, THANK YOU.
Jade voiced her concerns about spraying all these various chemicals and then letting us soak it all up. They want us to dowse our rooms in it the night before inspection, meaning we would sleep with the micro-bac and the bleach reeking. Then we go up to sanitize guest areas; we are walking through mist and rain of the chemicals without proper eye protection. We can’t even escape fumes down below in crew areas because they are painting the 95, the passage for crew that reaches the entire ship. People are coughing and becoming light headed from continual exposure. It’s fine for the guests who are on board for say a week at a time, but this is our home. II just want to scream: if you fumigate the ship, at least let us clear out properly so we can breath fresh, non toxic air.
So another beautiful day in Oslo was missed; I was stuck from 8 til 4 spraying chemicals, folding towels, and preparing the staterooms for the guests. My body aches and I am exhausted, but the thought of two more cruises until I’m home is my motivation.
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