Cruise Ship Sailed Through 'Nightmare' Storm, Local Woman Says

What began as a celebratory New Year's cruise ended in terror for a family from Greenport, New York after their ship sailed through the worst of this week's brutal storm.

Lisette Coly, her husband "Big" George E. Damalas, daughter Anastasia Damalas, son "Little" George R. Damalas and his fiance Natalia Damato all began the 7-day cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Breakaway on Dec. 29. It was smooth sailing on the 4,000 passenger ship for the first part of the journey, with stops in Florida and the Bahamas.

On Tuesday, though, Coly, noticed the tide seemed to be turning. Although the plans were to enjoy the day at NCL's private island, Great Stirrup Cay, after some of the tenders had taken passengers to the island, the skies began to darken, waters grew choppy, and the captain announced the tenders would no longer be running due to "dangerous sea conditions," she said.

Passengers, some throwing up, were tendered back to the ship. Still, though, Coly reasoned, "The sea is capricious. You never know what you're going to get. We didn't think too much about it yet."

The ship, instead of remaining docked near the island all day, took off, she said.

The weather continued to deteriorate, Coly said. Her son showed her reports on the internet of a "massive storm" in the area.

"Now, the boat was starting to rock," she said. "They were making announcements to hold onto the rails."

Coly and her husband turned in to their cabin, but the couple was woken abruptly at 1 a.m. "The ship is enormous, and it's rocking back and forth," she said. "Champagne bottles on the desk slid to the floor. The boat started to list."

Her husband, she said, travels with a CPAP machine, and the table it was on started sliding across the room.

"I was starting to get very concerned, trying to text the kids," she said. She and her husband, and her son and his fiance, had cabins on the fifth floor, while her daughter was in a solo cabin on the tenth floor.

"In the midst of the nightmare, I was frantic to get to my daughter but I couldn't, because it was dangerous for her and for us," Coly said.

Her daughter was getting dressed, her son, packing his things as terror mounted onboard, she said. Coly said she was trying to find precious photographs and jewelry to bring, should they have to leave the ship.

"The captain never announced anything," Coly said. "That's another thing I'm really angry about. It would have been nice to hear from the captain, to hear him say, 'Don't worry.'"

Thoughts of the 'Poseidon Adventure' went through her mind, she said, as well as basic science lessons, as the ship listed dramatically. "I'm thinking about fulcrums and at what point does the ship turn turtle," she said. "When this ship listed, it didn't come back."

Coly said it was the first time in her life she thought she might die. Although her husband has had health issues and nearly drowned in their pool this year, she'd never thought about losing her own life.

"I have never faced death, or my own mortality, except on this boat. I thought, 'This is how it's going to end? And I brought my family on this cruise?' I wondered how awful it is, to drown, and if it takes long," she said.

Adding to the fear, "terrible, big booming sounds were coming from the elevators" as the counterweights, heavy pulleys, slammed into the walls of the elevators, Coly said.

The ordeal lasted from about 1:30 a.m. until 5 or 6 a.m., when the boat finally straightened and regained equilibrium, Coly said.

Finally at around 7 a.m., passengers heard from the captain, who said they were experiencing "storm force winds on high seas. He said, 'This is a terrible storm,'" she said.

An hour later, he warned passengers to be careful walking on deck.

When asked for comment, Vanessa Picariello, APR, senior director, public relations, Norwegian Cruise Line responded Saturday by email: "During the early morning hours of Jan. 4, Norwegian Breakaway encountered stronger than forecasted weather conditions due to winter storm Grayson. The safety of our guests and crew is always our top priority and the ship's Captain adjusted the ship's speed and itinerary accordingly to maintain the safest possible route, delaying the ship's arrival. We sincerely apologize to our guests for the stronger than expected weather conditions and any resulting discomfort or inconvenience they may have experienced. ‎Norwegian Breakaway has returned safely to port and is now preparing to depart for the next scheduled cruise."

With all the outer decks closed, around 5,000 people, passengers and crew, were "confined in an indoor space," Coly said.

The carpets, she said, were wet. Passengers in balcony cabins told Coly that the force of winds and waves reaching to the upper decks had forced open balcony doors and let driving wind, rain and waves come raging into those balcony rooms.

"They had a bunch of refugees in the atrium, a big center space, trying to sleep with blankets and pillows because they couldn’t stay in their rooms. There was glass everywhere," Coly said. "It was just horrible."

And, she said, the majority of elevators were closed, water that had come in from the upper decks was running down the staircases, soaking into the elevators.

Coly once again retreated to her cabin, the ship rolling, until finally the captain said the barometer was rising and waves dissipating. Still, though, the ship was buffeted by gale force winds, she said.

The experience has left her angry, Coly said.

"We had no business being put into this. Everyone knew this massive storm was out there. Why did NCL decide to run ahead? They're based in Miami, why didn't they dock there? Instead they careened up the coast with this storm. It's absolutely crazy," she said.

The ship was supposed to dock in New York at 8 a.m. Friday but wasn't able dock until 4 p.m. No food or beverages were available after 2 p.m., she said.

With customs to be cleared, Coly and family did not disembark until about 6 p.m.; she was one of the first off the ship because her husband is in a wheelchair and she is a frequent client of NCL, she said.

"When I got off the ship, I looked back and all the decks, fences, gates, were all frozen solid," she said.

After getting home, Coly said she heard a report on CBSlocal.com, apologizing to oncoming passengers who were slated to board the Breakaway, offering them a day-refund for the lost day. That report stated that the waves swelled up to 30 feet.

The refund isn't the issue, Coly said. "People's lives were at risk for three days and we get nothing. Not a ''sorry, thank you for your patience.'" While she says she's sailed frequently throughout her life, this was the worst voyage of her life by far. "It was such a big, big boat, you would never assume this could happen," she said. "It was a nightmare. It was surreal. You wonder, 'Is this really happening?'"

Coly, president of the Parapsychology Foundation Eileen J. Garrett Library in Greenport, said she had no premonition of what would unfold on that cruise.

The relief at arriving home was palpable, she said.

"When I got home, I kissed the ground. I was so relieved," Coly said. "We were on that cruise to celebrate life, our son's engagement. Who would ever have thought this would happen?"

Looking ahead, Coly said she's not sure she will be cruising again any time soon, unless it's the North Ferry from Greenport to Shelter Island — close to home.

Photo courtesy Lisette Coly.