Cruise Ship Lawyers Blog
More than 100 passengers who traveled on P&O’s Ventura, a ship owned by Carnival Cruise Line, have filed suit after they say they got sick on board.
Attorneys for the passengers claim there were “repeated outbreaks” of illness on the ship between April and June. About 519 passengers reported for weeks about their symptoms of norovirus, a stomach bug that causes inflammation in the stomach and intestines and is highly contagious. The first outbreak allegedly took place in May during a two-week cruise around the Canary Islands.
In reporting from the BBC it was alleged that Carnival communicated that less than 1% of passengers experienced symptoms while Southampton health officials claimed the number was closer to 12% of passengers.
Sick passengers were asked to self-isolate in their cabins as the ship was deep-cleaned.
“We are sorry some of our guests may have been affected and we will be responding to the letter of claim in due course,” said a spokesperson for the company.
The case is ongoing.
Cruise Ship Illness
Last month, the Centers for Disease Control released a report detailing an outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease linked to two unnamed cruise lines. The outbreaks in those cases were linked to private balcony hot tubs.
The ships named in the report reported draining the water from these tubs between uses and increasing hyperchlorination and cleaning as a way to mitigate the growth of Legionella bacteria. At least eight cases were on Ship A while Ship B reported having four cases. Six patients from Ship A were hospitalized and all four people exposed to the disease on Ship B were hospitalized.
Operating out of Miami, Florida, where the cruise line industry has a heavy presence, Leesfield & Partners has represented thousands of passengers in their injury cases for nearly 50 years. Notable cases have included that of a 9-month-old baby who was misdiagnosed with a stomach bug instead of being treated for meningitis, resulting in multiple amputations to the infant and a $7.25 million parasailing excursion settlement.
Previous Cases
Our Legionnaires’ Disease attorneys have built a noteworthy reputation for their dogged persistence when it comes to pursuing the best possible outcome for injured clients and grieving families left fractured due to the negligence of private individuals, management companies and corporations alike.
Eric Shane, a Leesfield & Partners Trial Lawyer, recently represented a woman who contracted Legionnaires’ from a Florida hotel’s hot tub. In that case, the woman began experiencing symptoms of the disease the same day she checked out of her hotel that included fever and swelling. The woman went into septic shock and suffered an acute kidney injury from the ordeal.
In an investigation, it was revealed that the hotel and its maintenance personnel were not complying with industry standards for hot tubs. A six-figure settlement was secured for the woman in that case.
Mr. Shane is also handling a case involving two men at a Florida condominium who were infected with Legionnaires’ Disease after using the property’s hot tub. One of the men in that case tragically passed away.
In 2023, the firm settled two back-to-back cases of the disease on two unrelated clients at the same resort. One client is a Florida native while the other was visiting the area from Maryland. Both went to the hospital within days of leaving the resort with symptoms that included body soreness, fever, fatigue and difficulty breathing before they tested positive for Legionnaires’ Disease.
In those cases, two six-figure settlements were secured for the clients.
Cruise Ship Negligence
In cruise ship cases, the firm has previously handled a myriad of injury types such as excursion injuries, medical malpractice, slip and falls, crewmember injuries, injuries stemming from criminal activity aboard ships and more. Sadly, the firm has watched these cases become steadily worse as the cruise ship industry has grown in recent years.
With more people on board, it is likely that there will be more injuries, but cruise lines are also building larger ships with thrill-seeking, sometimes dangerous, amenities in order to compete with one another. These amenities include go-kart tracks, basketball courts, wave simulation machines and winding water slides that purposefully dangle passengers momentarily over the edge of the ship. While passengers are inclined to trust that these cruise lines have their best interest at heart – cruise lines are considered to be common carriers, a title that carries an irrefutable duty to safeguard passengers from harm while they are traveling aboard their ship – oftentimes, these ships cut corners and refute their responsibility to ensure passenger safety as a way to curtail liability or escape it altogether.
One case handled by the firm involves a little girl who was separated from her family on board. When the 8-year-old peered over a balcony, the badly installed ship railing gave way and she fell to her death.
A young boy playing basketball incurred a severe and life-altering head injury after he hit a steel, unpadded grommet while diving for an out-of-bounds ball.
A multi-million dollar settlement was obtained by Leesfield & Partners in that case.
If you, or a loved one, was injured on a cruise ship, call a Leesfield & Partners attorney today at 800-836-6400 to see if you may be eligible for compensation.
