How did the narrator and the …

Though water in the ship can be a cause of extreme panic, but the neither narrator nor any of his family members panicked. It could be owing to the sixteen years long training they had undertaken before setting off to the voyage. The author was really a great captain whose timely decisions helped them survive through the stormy ordeal. It was such a wise decision on his part to hire two professionals, Larry Vigil and Herb Seigler, to help them tackle the Southern Indian Ocean. They proved to be real saviours when the ship had been flooded with the sea water. They pumped like madmen to keep the water levels reasonably low. Even author and his wife lent a helping hand to them. The most amazing reaction was that of the kids. They showed such a courage during those hard times as is rare to be seen of children of that age. This courage of the kids motivated the author to figure out survival strategies for the entire crew. And ultimately they made it to Ile Amsterdam, a French scientific base.