Multiple news sources are reporting that at approximately 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 30, 2015, a boat carrying five people crashed into a concrete dock near the 3200 block of Northeast 38th Street, along the Intracoastal Waterway in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The boat that crashed into the dock is believed to have been traveling with a second boat, apparently carrying another five people. One person was thrown from the boat. Although this person was pulled from the water and efforts were made to resuscitate him, the person did not survive. Two others were transported to Broward Health Medical Center with what have been described as “potentially life-threatening injuries.” None of the identities of the boaters have been released. However, neighbors who were interviewed after the crash reported that the boaters appeared to be in their early twenties or possibly late teen years.
News sources have reported the near-drowning of a 4-year-old girl this week at the Bluegreen Vacations Fountains Resort in Orlando, Florida. The girl’s family found her at the bottom of the resort’s 6,000 square foot swimming pool. It is unknown whether the resort had lifeguards on duty at the time of the tragic discovery. Thankfully, an off-duty Lake County, Florida firefighter was vacationing at the resort and was able to revive the girl with cardiopulmonary resuscitation (“CPR”) efforts. The off-duty firefighter identified as Lt. Shannon Bush has been quoted describing the 4-year-old girl as “lifeless and unresponsive”. Shortly after Lt. Bush administered CPR and was able to obtain a pulse, the girl was transported to a local area hospital for treatment. She was reportedly released from the hospital the next day.
How does a modern cruise ship run aground? That is what maritime investigators will be trying to sort out over the coming months in the case of Boston based Norwegian Dawn grounding on a charted reef off the Bermuda coast. The liner had just left King’s Wharf on Hamilton Island to start its last leg of its voyage back to Boston when it grounded. Though no reports have been made as to the exact number of people who were aboard, the Norwegian Dawn can carry more than 2,000 passengers and up to 1,059 crew members. What makes this grounding noteworthy is that this ship is not a rust bucket in its last stages of useful life owned by a nearly defunct shipping company. On the contrary, this cruise ship is equipped with sophisticated electronic navigational and steering equipment as well as depth recorders which sound warnings when entering dangerously shallow waters. Again, how does a modern cruise ship run aground?
Tragedy has struck. It is being reported that a 10-year-girl has drown in one of the swimming pools aboard the NCL operated Norwegian Gem cruise ship. Coast Guard Spokesperson, Nate Littlejohn, stated the cruise ship was 75 miles off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, when the girl drowned. The ship’s medical staff administered CPR, but the girl could not be revived, according to the statement released by Norwegian Cruise Lines. The Norwegian Gem was on a seven day voyage from New York to Florida and the Bahamas. The Coast Guard is investigating the death.
A sexual assault occurs in the United States every 2 minutes. Often times these attacks are unreported. Like most sexual assault situations, victims raped aboard cruise ships most often do not inform authorities. Sometimes, however, the victim does come forward. Last summer a student was raped aboard a Celebrity cruise ship. According to media reports, the incident occurred on the night of July 23, 2014 aboard the Celebrity Reflection. It is alleged that a man spiked the girl’s drink, sexually assaulted her then tried to rape her. She was found in her cabin is a compromising position. Upon returning to port, the police interviewed the victim and gathered evidence to prosecute her attacker. An arrest warrant has been issued. As of the date of this blog post, no arrest has been made.
