Wrongful Death

Published on: February 9, 2012

Family of Deceased Cruise Passenger Seeks Information from Fellow Cruisers

Earlier this week we reported on the death of a cruise passenger on the Allure of the Seas, operated by Royal Caribbean.

At the time, Royal Caribbean’s public relations was in full damage control mode, cooperating with the local authorities, providing investigators with captured footage of the ship’s closed-circuit surveillance cameras. The only conclusion one could reach after reading RCCL’s statement was that the 30-year-old cruise passenger had committed suicide by jumping over the railing of his cabin located on deck 11. The investigators in charge, looking at the same evidence, had not reached that same conclusion, and simply stated that the investigation was still ongoing.

Within the last 24 hours, more information has surfaced that may very well change how the young man came to disappear at sea.

Published on: February 7, 2012

Another Death of 30 year-old Royal Caribbean Cruise Passenger

By Leesfield & Partners

An investigation led by the authorities in the Bahamas and assisted by Federal Agents is underway after yet another cruise passenger fell off the ship and died as a result of his injuries.

At the time the incident occurred, Allure of the Seas, cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean, was approximately one mile off the coast of Cozumel, Mexico. It has been reported by other passengers that the young man was a British citizen, and allegedly fell from the balcony of his stateroom located on Deck 11.

As soon as the incident became known the crewmembers, multiple public announcements were made over the speakers throughout the entire ship and Royal Caribbean employees began searching for the missing passenger. Once it became clear to crewmembers that the passenger was indeed missing and had probably fallen off the ship, the captain immediately alerted the local authorities of the incident.

Royal Caribbean has since issued a statement saying “a review of the ship’s closed-circuit camera footage observed the British guest going over the balcony railing in his stateroom on deck 11. The location of the ship at the time the guest went overboard was marked on the ship’s Global Positioning System (GPS) and the US and Mexican Coast Guard were alerted. Our Care Team is providing support to the guest’s family and our thoughts and prayers are with them.”

All signs in the early stages of the investigation point to a suicide, yet Superintendent Paul Rolle, Head of the Central Detective Unit, has shared with members of the media that the investigation is not complete. He said in an interview with The Tribune: “We do not have much information we can share with the public at this point. All we know is a British man is dead and it may or may not have been suicide. We are still conducting our on scene investigations and interviewing eyewitness. We are being assisted by other law enforcement agencies and expect to wrap up our investigations shortly. At that time, I will provide an update,”

The deceased, whose name the authorities have not released, was on board a ship along with more than 4,500 passengers as it sailed from Florida to Cancun on a gay and lesbian-themed seven-day cruise.
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Published on: February 2, 2012

Liability of Cruise Line for Serving Alcohol to Cruise Passengers

By Leesfield & Partners

We recently reported on two incidents occurring only days apart where cruise passengers had fallen and died as a result of their injuries.

The first incident saw the death of Barbara Wood on the Liberty of the Seas, owned and operated Royal Caribbean Cruises. The investigators and witnesses to the tragedy told the media that Barbara Wood was leaving the ship’s nightclub, Catacombs, when she fell while going down the club’s stairs. She hit her head on one of the steps and sustained a massive head injury, resulting in her death about an hour later.

Less than 48 hours later, Carnival cruise passenger, Walter Bouknight, fell down two floors after falling off a platform in the atrium of the Carnival Fantasy. Passengers who witnessed the events have since reported that alcohol may have been in play. The young man may have been gambling in the ship’s casino a few moments prior to his fall and may have been drinking to the point of intoxication.

In both instances, alcohol consumption and intoxication may have been the main contributing factor to explain these incidents. If there is evidence that these passengers had consumed alcohol prior to their fall, and that the amount of alcohol in their system rendered them intoxicated, Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean Cruises respectively could face a lawsuit for having over-served alcohol to these passengers.

Cruise Lines can be held liable for over-serving alcohol to cruise passengers
Florida’s Third District Court of Appeals decided in a landmark case in 2004, that cruise lines can be held liable for over-serving their passengers to the point of intoxication if they sustain injuries caused by their alcohol-related impairment. In Hall v. Royal Caribbean Cruises, Judge Schwartz reversed the lower court’s decision ruling that the defendant cruise line has an established duty to exercise reasonable care for the safety of its passengers, a duty couched in general maritime law.

Royal Caribbean had argued that the Court of Appeal should look to Florida’s dram shop act as the governing law to resolve that case and not general maritime principles. Had the Third District Court of Appeal agreed with Royal, it would have severely limited the cruise lines’ liability in future similar cases.

The Florida’s Dram Shop Act enacted as Statute 768.125 provides that [a] person who furnishes alcoholic beverages to a person of lawful drinking age shall not become liable for injury or damage caused by or resulting from the intoxication of such person. The exceptions to Florida’s Dram Shop Act are when a Florida business willfully and unlawfully sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to a person who is not of lawful drinking age or when it knowingly serves a person habitually addicted to the use of any or all alcoholic beverages.

Consequently, since the Hall decision, cruise passengers have able to bring lawsuits against cruise lines for not only over-serving and essentially intoxicating them while on the ship, but also for intoxicating other passengers who may have become violent towards them as a result of having been served too much alcohol.
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Published on: February 1, 2012

Reasons for Death of Carnival Cruise Ship Passenger Remain Unknown

By Leesfield & Partners

We reported on Monday that a cruise passenger on the Carnival Fantasy had died on Friday while the ship was docked in Nassau, Bahamas. The authorities have since released the identity of the victim. 26-year-old Walter Bouknight from South Carolina fell from one of the platforms of the ship’s atrium and landed two floors below. Witnesses to the incident told the local media that the young man was unresponsive and had probably been killed on impact.

The above photograph was taken a few moments after the incident. Yellow tape is still visible on the platform from which Walter Bouknight fell. Two floors below, near the bottom of the stairs, is where the young man’s body rested, an area blocked off by crewmembers while first responders attempted to revive the passenger.

The Carnival Fantasy was on a 5-day cruise in the Bahamas and has since returned to Charleston, South Carolina. Passengers who were on the cruise when this tragedy occurred have been asked to comment on the events. While some have alleged that Walter had lost money gambling in the ship’s casino before his fall, others have reported that the young man was suicidal.

Several other passengers however have vehemently disagreed with that theory. One outraged passenger insisted on rebutting the theory as untrue. This passenger who knows the father of the deceased commented that alcohol may have been an issue and that whether it was intoxication or the momentum from running towards the railing that caused the young man to fall over the railing, he certainly was not suicidal.
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Published on: January 30, 2012

Cruise Passenger Dies after Slip and Fall on Cruise Ship

By Leesfield & Partners

In the early morning hours of the day on Monday, Barbara Wood, a 47-year-old cruise passenger from Middleborough, Massachusetts, hit her head while falling down the stairs aboard the Liberty of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Cruises.

The investigation is still ongoing at this time, but some details have already come to light. Mrs. Wood was on a five day cruise which stopped in Cozumel, Mexico and was to end at Port Everglades on Monday morning. Some passengers reported hearing an alert made over the ship’s speakers between 1 and 2 a.m., when the incident occurred.

At that time, Barbara Wood left the ship’s Catacombs nightclub and was allegedly on her way to her cabin. On her way, she slipped on a step while going down the stairs and in her tumble, she hit her head. She was taken to the onboard infirmary when she was pronounced dead about one hour later, before the ship could reach the port according to the cruise line’s spokesman.

it is unclear at this time what caused the woman to fall to her death. An autopsy will be performed within the next 48 hours to determine the exact cause of death. The autopsy will also help ascertain whether alcohol played a role in the fatal incident or whether investigators should look into the stairs in question as a possible reason for the cruise passenger to slip.

One of the passengers who witnessed the incident, Missy Whitlock, told the media that “[s]he fell down the steps. There was a lot of blood.”

This is the second cruise passenger in as many days that has fallen and died while on a cruise ship. This morning we reported that a cruise passenger fell off a platform located in the atrium of the Carnival Fantasy.
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Published on: January 30, 2012

Death of Cruise Passenger on the Carnival Fantasy in the Bahamas

By Leesfield & Partners

While the Cruise Industry is still in the eye of the storm, having to deal with the worst year in terms of public relations amid the tragedy of the Costa Concorda which capsized off the coast of Italy, Carnival’s name remains in the headlines today when we learned that a cruise passenger aboard the Carnival Fantasy died on the ship on Friday.

The early statements released by the authorities in the Bahamas have revealed that a 26-year-old cruise passenger from South Carolina fell to his death while the ship was docked in Nassau, Bahamas. The ship departed from Charleston, South Carolina, on a 5-day cruise in the Bahamas.

As a result of the death of the young american cruise passenger, the authorities and Carnival remained docked in Nassau for one additional day to allow the investigation to proceed. A visit to Freeport was cancelled by Carnival, which released the following statement on Saturday: “We are deeply saddened by this tragic event and extend our heartfelt condolences to the guest’s family and loved ones”

The details of the actual incident that resulted in the cruise passengers’ death are still vague at this early stage of the investigation. The theory that has been conveyed to the media by the Bahamas police supposes that the man, his name has yet to be released to the media, jumped off one of the platforms of the Carnival Fantasy Atrium and fell to his death. He was declared dead at the scene.

The Carnival Fantasy Atrium where the incident allegedly took place

Carnival issued another statement relaying the same theory to the media that one of its passenger apparently jumped from one floor to another aboard the ship and fell to his death.

We will learn more of the circumstances of this young man’s death in the days and weeks to come. This new tragedy however could not come at a worst time for Carnival and for the cruise industry as a whole. It is still dealing with daily blows and backlashes from consumers after the horrendous capsizing of the Costa Concorda which has led to 17 deaths and hundreds of passengers injured.
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Published on: January 17, 2012

Communication with Port Authority Confirms Costa Concordia’s Captain Abandoned Ship

By Leesfield & Partners

A newly released audio exchange between Port Authority and Costa Concordia Captain Fransesco Schettino was released today. Below is the transcript of the exchange:

Captain Schettino: It’s Capt. Schettino.

Port Authority: Schettino, listen to me, there are people trapped onboard, now you go back, you will go with your rescue boat under the stern of the ship, there are some steps, you climb those steps and you get onboard and you get back to me letting me know how many people are on board. Is that clear to you? I am actually recording this conversation captain.

Port Authority: Speak in a loud voice.

Captain: So, the ship right now …

Port Authority: Speak in a loud voice! Put your hand by the microphone to cover it and speak up! Is that clear?

Captain: So, right now the ship is tilted…

Port Authority: I understand that. Listen to me, there are people that are getting off using the rope ladder on the stern side, you go back there and you go up that ladder the opposite way, you go onboard the ship and you tell me how many people [are there.] And what they need. You tell me if there are children, women or people that need assistance and you give me a number for each one of these categories is that clear?

Captain: Officer, please.

Port Authority: There are no “pleases!” Get back on board! Please assure me that you are going back on board.

Captain: I am here on the rescue boat. I’m right here, I didn’t go anywhere else, I’m here.

Port Authority: What are you doing captain?

Captain: I’m here to coordinate rescue operations.

Port Authority: Do you refuse to do that?

Captain: No, I’m not refusing to do that.

Port Authority: Are you refusing to back on board?

Captain: No, I am not refusing to go back. I am not going because the other rescue boat stopped.

Port Authority: Get back on board! This is an order! You don’t need to make any other assessment. You have declared that you have abandoned ship, therefore I’m in command. Get back on board right now is that clear?

Captain: Officer…

Port Authority: Can you not hear me?

Captain: I’m getting back on board.

Port Authority: Then go! And call me right away when you are on board. There’s my rescuer there.

Captain: Where is your rescuer?

Port Authority: My rescuer is on the stern side, go! There are already bodies, Schettino! Go!

Captain: Officer how many bodies are there?
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Published on: December 20, 2011

Celebrity Cruises Terminates Parasail Excursion After Death of Passenger

By Leesfield & Partners

Bernice Kraftcheck, a Celebrity Cruises passenger, fell to her death while parasailing in tandem with her daughter off the coast of St. Thomas. Danielle Haese, Brenice’s 34 year old daughter was also very seriously injured during the incident.

After several days of investigating the facts of this tragic incident, the theory that squalls and wind gusts that afternoon may have caused the mother-and-daughter tandem to fall from the sky and crash into the waters of St Thomas. Celebrity Cruises announced that it was terminating parasailing excursions pending the result of the investigation. Other Cruise companies followed suit and Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean have also suspended their parasailing excursions across the Caribbean. Carnival Cruise also canceled its parasailing excursions in St. Thomas, but not in the rest of the Caribbean.

Bernice Kraftcheck and her daughter were passengers on a Celebrity Cruise and booked a cruise excursion through the cruise company’s website. Cruise lines offer passengers to book excursions, such as parasailing, either directly on the cruise lines’ website, or while on the ship at any time during the cruise.

Deadly and catastrophic accidents occur every year when cruise passengers are on excursions, and this incident, as tragic as it was, was not the first time a cruise passenger died while on a cruise excursion.

The cruise lawyers of Leesfield & Partners have been representing passengers who have been injured during shore excursions, as well as the families of cruise passengers who died during an excursion. These shore excursions are operated by companies independent from the Cruise companies. There is however a financial relationship between the cruise lines and the local tour companies who offer excursions to cruise passengers. Cruise lines offer their paying passengers to book directly from the cruise lines’ websites an excursion, or to book it at the excursion desk located on each and every cruise ship. In exchange, the local tour companies agree to pay the cruise lines a percentage of their sales that are generated by cruise lines.
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Published on: December 13, 2011

Cruise Ship Passenger Dies after Falling Overboard

By Leesfield & Partners

Cruise lines have the duty and responsibility to provide a safe environment to their paying customers and to prevent the risk of injury or death of passengers while on a cruise ship. Sadly, every year several passengers who board cruise ships disappear or fall overboard through no fault of their own.

According to the Los Angeles Times. Long Beach Fire Department spokesman Steve Yamamoto confirmed that Kelly Ryann Dorrell, a 26-year-old woman, who was a passenger on the Queen Mary ocean liner fell over the handrail from the ship’s fourth story (some 75 feet). In her fall, the woman collided with several parts of the ship and sustained massive trauma to the head before eventually falling into the water. Her boyfriend, who witnessed the fall, jumped in the water in an attempt to rescue the woman, along with two police officers who were nearby.

Some early reports indicate that the woman was drinking at the time and fell overboard after she lost her balance. After being rescued by the firefighters, Kelly Dorrell was transported to the hospital in critical condition and pronounced dead later that day. An autopsy on Dorrell’s body on December 15, 2011 will help to determine the level of blood alcohol content of the deceased at the time of the incident.

In cases where a cruise passenger falls overboard, Leesfield & Partners cruise ship attorneys will look at all legal avenues to determine whether the cruise line met its duties and if the incident could have been prevented:

Defective or Inadequate Handrail:
In the Cruise Ship Safety Act passed by Congress, all cruise ships are required to have handrails at least 42 inches (forty-two) tall. This new law will be effective by January 1, 2012. If a handrail is found to be in violation of the law, and a passenger falls overboard or disappears, the cruise line could be responsible for its own negligence.

Failure to Warn of Bad Weather:
One of the misconceptions of the public at large about to board a cruise ship for the first time is the effect rough weather conditions can have on their safety. Being on a very large ocean liner does not immune cruise passengers from injuries when the ship enters a patch of rough weather. When at sea, cruise lines have the duty to warn its passengers from bad weather as soon as the dangers become known. To fulfill their duties, cruise ships are equipped with radars that detect patches of rough weather far in advance of feeling their effect. Cruise lines can be held liable for failure to warn passengers who injure themselves or fall off the ship during a storm.

Cruise Lines can be held Strictly Liable
In past cases, passengers were pushed overboard by the cruise ship’s crew members. If a passenger dies, disappears or sustains injuries because of a crew member’s violent act, the cruise line will be held strictly liable. Cruise lines have the duty to protect their passengers from violence, especially violent behavior from crew members.

Violence between Passengers
In general, a cruise line will not be held strictly liable for a passenger’s injuries or death caused by the physical assault of another passenger. However, cruise ships may be held liable if it failed to provide adequate security or failed to prevent an assault or contributed in some way to the assault. (Alcohol Consumption)

Alcohol Consumption
Today, most cruise lines allow passengers 21 years of age and older to drink alcohol on the ship. Even though cruise ship employees are trained to request the ID card of passengers, it is not infrequent that teenagers and under-age passengers consume alcohol on cruise ships. Cruise lines also have the duty to limit passengers’ alcohol intake. This self-imposed duty can result in the cruise line’s liability if it is determined that a passenger became intoxicated and fell off the ship.

Rescue Operations
When a passenger is reported missing, cruise lines must perform a reasonable and adequate search and rescue operation. If the cruise line fails to search for a missing passenger or performs an inadequate rescue operation, it may be found liable for the disappearance or death of the passenger.
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Published on: September 22, 2011

Wrongful Death Case of Cruise Ship Passenger Reaches Confidential Settlement with Miami Cruise Line

By Leesfield & Partners

A common carrier has a continuing duty and obligation for the care of its passengers. Its duty is to warn of dangers known to the carrier in places where the passenger is invited to, or may be reasonably expected to visit. This duty extends throughout the length of the voyage, and does not cease at each port of call, only to resume when the passenger re-embarks. Carlisle v. Ulysses Line Ltd., S.A., 475 So.2d 248 (Fla.3d DCA 1985)

On the second day of a seven day cruise, Passenger Doe became ill and began vomiting blood. He presented to the cruise ship’s infirmary, however, instead of receiving life saving medical care, or being evacuated to a proper medical facility, the ship’s medical doctor and Captain made the decision to place him and his wife in a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean, in the dark of night, and transport them to a coastal village in a foreign country.

In desperate need of a blood transfusion, he was brought to a makeshift medical facility. After a horrific trip, and in dire need of blood transfusion, Mr. Doe and his wife were told that the facility did not have blood readily available to him. The facility attempted to get blood, but when the blood finally arrived, it was frozen and had to be thawed under heat lamps. The thawing process took several hours, and before any blood could be transfused into Mr. Doe’s body, as he laid on a gurney, with his wife at his side, he died. Teh couple forty-year life together ended in the most atrocious of circumstances.

This awful event was even more tragic because this elderly couple spent their lives helping other people. When this couple went into retirement, they served as missionaries traveling throughout North America in their mobile home to various Christian ministries providing carpentry, plumbing, painting, electrical help, as well as tutoring to the poor and needy. Sadly, when they needed help, no one was there for them.

The cruise ship injury lawyers at Leesfield & Partners fought for justice and were able to reach a confidential settlement with the cruise line. In addition, the cruise line assured our client that because of this tragedy measures had been taken to ensure that an event like this would never happen again. They promised that rather than evacuating dying passengers on life boats, they would try their best to heliport injured passengers to avoid further delays in getting medical treatment offshore. They also promised to make sure that injured passengers would be taken to well-equipped medical facilities and hospitals and avoid at all costs evacuations to small clinics that do not have the personnel, manpower, and most importantly, the proper medical equipments to not only save lives but stabilize patients in need of immediate medical attention.
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