You can see the rafts and chutes repacked and ready to be stowed back on the ship. The crane lifted them into place...that's why the ship had to be turned at the dock, to allow the crane access to the side of the ship from which the rafts had been deployed.
At some point during this process, the tarps in which each chute/raft combination were wrapped prior to being put in large white drums for storage on the ship had to be retrieved from the water where they laid. In what I'm sure was an unsanctioned move, a dockworker climbed out on a bumper to try to pull them in. All they'd need is for someone to be hurt during a safety drill!
The intent of these chutes and rafts is that they could be deployed when the ship tilted so much to one side (as with the Concordia) so that the life boats become unlaunchable. They basically provide redundancy in evacuating people from a sinking ship. The Concordia surely had these same rafts; why they weren't deployed is anyone's guess.
The first post of each season:
- 15 nights Panama Canal 2021~Emerald Princess
- 22 nights Alaska 2021~Nieuw Amsterdam, Majestic Princess
- 140 nights Transpacific, Australia & South Pacific 2019-2020~Ruby&Majestic Princess
- Around the World 2018
- 37 nights Hawaii land trip 2018
- 31 nights Hawaii land trip 2017
- 80 nights Australia & South Pacific 2017~Golden Princess
- 17 nights Panama Canal & World Cruise 2017 Segment #1~Pacific Princess
- 14 nights small ship Caribbean 2016~Pacific Princess
- (Not 77, instead) 65 nights Mediterranean and Transatlantic 2016~Pacific Princess
- 60 nights Caribbean 2016~Emerald Princess
- 87 nights Polynesia 2015~Pacific Princess, Easter Island, Rarotonga
- 30 nights Caribbean 2015~Caribbean Princess
- 9 nights Mexico 2015~Grand Princess
- 96 nights French Polynesia 2014-2015~Pacific Princess
- 150 nights Caribbean 2013-2014~Royal Princess, Nieuw Amsterdam, Allure OTS, Emerald Princess
- 120 nights Caribbean 2012-2013~Emerald Princess, Noordam
- 14 nights Alaska 2012~Island Princess
- 100 nights Caribbean 2011-2012~Emerald Princess
- FAQs about spending winters at sea