A Canadian cruise passenger fell from the Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas while the ship was returned to San Juan, Puerto Rico after concluding a week long Caribbean voyage. A spokes person for Royal Caribbean stated the ship’s captain preformed search and rescue maneuvers after reports of people reported seeing the passenger fall overboard around 8:46 pm on the night of December 28th. Once a passenger is reported to have fallen overboard, Royal Caribbean had the legal duty to perform a reasonable search and rescue operation.
A 56-year-old cruise passenger was medevaced off the Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas last Sunday night. At approximately 10 p.m. the Coast Guard was notified that a woman aboard the ship was in medical distress. A flight crew was dispatched and rescued the woman while the cruise ship was off the Florida coast. The woman was taken to New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, North Carolina.
The CDC has issued a cruise ship illness outbreak alert for the Norwegian Gem. The report states that during the November 13-25 voyage 111 passengers and 3 crew members reported being ill with vomiting and/or diarrhea. In response to the outbreak NCL, the operator of the Norwegian Gem, increased cleaning and disinfecting procedures as well as collected stool specimens for testing by the CDC. The cruise ship currently makes weekly voyages from New York City.
The Coast Guard medically evacuated a cruise passenger from the Carnival Fascination on the evening of December 15th after exhibiting signs of a heart attack. The cruise ship was approximately 38 miles off the coast of St. Lucie, Florida when a request was made for medical assistance. Coast Guard Air Station Miami dispatched a MH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter crew to meet the Fascination. The flight crew safely hoisted the passenger onto the helicopter and transferred her to Broward General Hospital in Ft. Lauderdale. The woman’s condition is unknown at this time.
Another medical emergency has occurred on the NCL cruise ship Breakaway. This time the Coast Guard was called to medevac an 87-year-old passenger while the cruise line was passing Ocracoke Island off the North Carolina coast. After receiving a call for medical assistance on Monday, December 16th, the Coast Guard dispatched a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter rescue crew from its Elizabeth City air station. The crew along with a flight surgeon hoisted the passenger onto the helicopter and transferred her to Vidant Medical Center in Greenville. The passenger’s condition is currently unknown.
