Cruise Ship Lawyers Blog
Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas continues to make headlines months after its inaugural sail and people are still talking about the enormity of it.
Though the ship has been sailing since the beginning of the year, a recent video featuring its arrival in Port Miami has gained traction online with many users asking “how does this thing manage to float?”
The answer can be found in most grade school science classrooms – buoyancy. When a massive ship such as the Icon of the Seas is hulking past seemingly without effort, it is because it is pushing aside water, displacing enough to equal its weight. Structural designs such as a U-shaped hull help the ship carve through the waves and displace water. The hull’s round edges reduce potential drag and keep the ship from rolling. When building the immense ‘floating cities’ we know as cruises today, engineers must take weight distribution into account. Ships that are bottom-heavy will sink while the opposite would cause the ship to be destabilized, increasing the probability it would topple over.
The same is true for any ship though the leviathan-like vessel, weighing in at 250,800 gross tons and stretching 1,196 feet long, does attract a considerable amount of attention. The Icon of the Seas is considered to be the largest cruise ship in the world. That may not stand for long, however, as other cruise companies within the industry are sure to build their own giants to be able to compete.
Carnival Cruise Lines recently announced they would be adding three massive ships to their growing fleet with the carrying capacity to accommodate approximately 8,000 guests, the same as the Icon of the Seas. The trio of ships will be the largest vessels operated by the company. The first is scheduled to be completed in 2029 with the other two following in 2031 and 2033. Two additional ships were also announced to be unveiled consecutively in 2027 and 2028. This comes after the company announced it would undertake five other vessels from sister brands.
Potential Dangers of ‘Floating Cities’
While cruising is a fun and convenient way for passengers to travel, there are more people on board than ever before partaking in amenities such as go-karting, twisting water slides and wave simulators. With so much going on, it leaves room for error. Water puddles that can lead to horrific slip and falls, inadequate balcony railings and a lack of security on board can all have devastating consequences for passengers.
In its decades of personal injury practice in Miami, Key West and Orlando, Leesfield & Partners have seen thousands of cases in which clients have been injured due to the negligence of these corporations. Slip and fall aboard cruise ships have resulted in well over $3 million in recovery for clients with the majority of these falls taking place on wet pool decks and floors that could have been easily taken care of to prevent injuries to passengers.
One family represented by lawyers with the firm lost their daughter after they were separated on their ship. When the 8-year-old reached a balcony and leaned over the interior railing, it shifted and caused her to fall five stories to her death.
A six-figure recovery was obtained for the family in that case.
In medical malpractice cases aboard cruise ships, Leesfield & Partners attorneys have represented clients with shocking stories of ignorant doctors who flout protocol and safety measures seemingly on a whim.
A man later represented by the firm went to cruise doctors on the ship where he was a crewmember because he felt nauseous. The man was injected with the maximum dose of a drug that should have been administered slowly over two minutes. Instead, the ship’s medical team administered the medication to him rapidly directly into his IV. The man was in immediate, excruciating pain and doctors searched for what to do on the internet. When he was finally able to disembark and go to a hospital, 17 hours later, doctors performed a procedure to save his arm. Days later, when it was determined the procedure was unsuccessful, it was decided the man would need an amputation.
Attorneys with the firm secured a $3,337,500 award for damages.
Another family represented by Leesfield & Partners was that of a mother and daughter enjoying a cruise ship vacation and the parasailing excursion they purchased on board. Little did they know it would have devastating consequences. A rope tethering them to the boat snapped because of heavy winds while the two were already up in the air. They plummeted toward the water. The mother was killed in the incident and her daughter sustained traumatic injuries. The cruise line tried to skirt responsibility by claiming that the excursion was an independent contractor despite the fact it was purchased on the ship.
Leesfield & Partners attorneys secured a $7.5 million award for the grieving family in that case.
