Mary Belle Rouge

*Mary Belle Rouge* was a J-Class luxury passenger cruiser operated by Creosote Cruises from 1999-2005. Originally ordered by Princess Cruises from German company Bremer Vulkan, it was bought out and re-decorated by Creosote Cruises in 1998. It marked the height of efforts by Jeremiah Creosote to create a high-profile business brand, with the ship's centrepiece being a copy of his London restaurant L'Elegant. The vessel was smaller than most cruise ships, with a passenger capacity of 502, it was targeted at more affluent sections of the UK public.

The ship famously ran aground in Antigua in 2005, causing 16 injuries and seriously damaging the hull. The incident was fraught with rumours due to Jeremiah Creosote's presence on the bridge, with widespread speculation he had been steering the ship itself. The ship was controversially sold off for scrap and Creosote Cruises closed down the following year.

## Marketing & Operation

Despite Creosote's claims to have 're-created the golden age of passenger cruises', the ship was remarked on for its similarity to cruise industry standards, with the majority of its interiors remaining as they had been to order by Princess Cruises. However, first class cabins had been furnished with antiquated fixtures, inspired by Jeremiah's recent viewing of the film *Titanic* (1997). That same film inspired him to import his favourite restaurant décor, creating a 'L'Elegant On the Waves'.

Many heavy and unsecured decorations were accused of violating industry guidelines, however these reports were reckoned to boost the ship's initial popularity with passengers who wanted to experience a bygone era. Jeremiah built on this marketing strategy by targeting advertisements in The Daily Mail, claiming his ship was 'health and safety free'.

Despite an initially successful round of European cruises, Mary Belle Rouge's passenger numbers faltered, mostly due to complaints that the ship never met schedule, which was blamed on the companies' inexperience in co-ordinating with port authorities or other cruise companies, who were generally hostile toward Creosote Cruises. In 2003, Jeremiah Creosote acquired a home on Barbados, coinciding with the introduction of Caribbean cruises for Mary Belle Rouge.

## Antigua Grounding

On 19th April 2005, Mary Belle Rouge was due to dock at St John's in the island of Antigua and Barbuda at 10pm. It had undersold on passenger numbers, carrying just 281 guests, including company owner Jeremiah Creosote, who was seen dining and interacting with passengers before departing to the bridge.

Instead of docking at St John's as expected, it steamed past the port, and guests later reported Jeremiah Creosote was overheard on the ship's tannoy claiming the ship would perform a 'victory lap' around the island. Guests then noticed an increase in the ship's speed. A series of bangs were heard as the ship sailed up the East half of the island, before the ship slowed and ground to a halt just 300m from the shore at 10.47pm. One bulkhead was flooded and the ship disengaged any propulsion. An orderly evacuation was ordered with assistance from the coastguard, during which most the injuries occurred when 4 intoxicated passengers fell into the sea and were retrieved. Some crew also filled one lifeboat entirely with bottles of alcohol, which were distributed among the passengers on land, reportedly on the orders of Jeremiah Creosote.

A skeleton crew of essential officers and engineers remained aboard and carried out assessments, they observed limited damage, with the flooding well enough contained to maintain buoyancy. The ship was freed by rising tide and was successfully piloted to Maracaibo, Venezuela the following day.

## Subsequent Investigation & Reports

The ship's deviation from course was unanticipated and unauthorised from Creosote Cruises. The company was accused of negligence by the British press, who also focused on the rapid re-locating of the vessel to Venezuela, which was taken entirely without assistance from the authorities. Few pictures were taken of the vessel while it was stricken, and no full damage report was released by the company.

It is widely believed Jeremiah Creosote ordered the 'victory lap' of the island, and continues to be rumoured that he was steering the ship itself. No officer who was aboard the bridge at the time has publicly come forward to give a version of events, but newspapers published stories from several unidentified sources who claimed to be aboard the bridge. These stories reported Jeremiah to have been 'veering the wheel back and forth' and 'walking around wearing the Captains' hat waving a bottle of Champagne'. His whereabouts following the incident remain unclear, with some reports claiming he was seen leaving the bridge as early as 10.50pm, while others claim he exited aboard the final lifeboat to the shore after helping co-ordinate the abandon ship order.

The most widely accepted theory is that the ship, being steered either by instruction or directly from the helm by Creosote, oversteered to port after passing Green Island, leading to a grounding on the reefs which lie to the North. Since the engines were not turned off until the ship had fully ran aground, it is assumed Captain John Crampton ordered they be kept on to maintain manoeuvrability until the last. The lack of intervention by bridge officers and the captain has been blamed on a combination of intoxication and fear of contradicting the company owner, though the efficiency of procedures following initial impacts indicates control was re-taken by Captain.

Captain Crampton had been previously retired before being recruited by Creosote Cruises when Jeremiah Creosote met him in a bar in Portsmouth. He re-entered retirement and subsequently refused to comment on the details of the incident.

## Scrapping

The lack of deaths, serious injuries or even environment damage in the Antigua Grounding helped Creosote Cruises shirk threats of legal action, but its share-prices plunged following the incident. Mary Belle Rouge remained in Venezuela, where passengers' possessions were transferred from the ship and more extensive assessments were carried out.

Creosote was said to be distraught over the incident, claiming to colleagues he 'wished he'd never gotten involved in that ghastly business'. His ongoing dissatisfaction with Creosote Cruises has led some to speculate that he caused the Antigua Grounding as an excuse to exit the industry. Despite its reputation was the company's flagship vessel, Mary Belle Rouge was officially scrapped in August 2005. The company announced the reason for this decision was the lack of willing buyer in the cruise industry for a such a relatively small vessel.

The ship had been suffering an ongoing customer shortage and poor reputation, and industry insiders beyond the company also defended the rationale behind the scrapping. Creosote's own pleasure yacht 'Champangel', was completed in 2005 and was reckoned to fill the maritime void left by Mary Belle Rouge.