Are rogue waves the cruise lines' fault? Federal judge says no
You may remember the rogue wave that hit Norwegian Dawn in April 2005, causing a serious scare and superficial ship damage, but no major injuries. Naturally in our litigation-happy country, a class-action lawsuit was threatened, claiming that the episode was somehow Norwegian Cruise Line's fault... that the wave should have been foreseen and avoided. Well, US District Court Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga yesterday disagreed, by denying a motion for class certification.Even applying the best science that's available today, rogue waves are just that: unpredictable surprises. Some research has suggested they're more common than sparse anecdotal evidence would have you believe, and studies are ongoing into how to predict them.
Giving a little Hollywood flair were accusations that the ship was rushing back to New York to appear on The Donald's hit Apprentice TV show, but that was not the case. In fact, the National Transportation Safety Board and the Bahamas Maritime Authority both concluded that the cruise line and the ship's captain acted properly in the incident. Though the rough water made the voyage unpleasant, no crew or passengers were seriously injured.
Norwegian Cruise Line's website quotes the company's president and CEO, Colin Veitch, as saying, "We are pleased and gratified with Judge Altonaga's decision."
Norwegian Cruise Line offers year-round seven and eleven-night cruises from New York City to Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean.
Labels: Norwegian Cruise Line
1 Comments:
I was on a cruise on the Carnival Funship Imagination when a similar event happened: we were paralleling a storm, which was predicted to lose strength, when all of a sudden the wind increased and changed. As a result, we ran headfirst into a huge wave, tipping the ship enough that, in our cabin, our bed slid across the floor. Reportedly, water spilled from the pool (which was not very full for safety reasons to begin with). Glass items in the ships's onboard shops fell from the shelves and were broken, and the stabilizers kicked in. The cruise director, breathless and flustered himself, came on the intercom to assure us that everything was under control and the captain had the ship perfectly in order after the rogue wave hit.
I was relieved to discover that fellow passengers had the maturity not to immediately think "lawsuit." No one was injured, the crew acted quickly and responsibly, and the cruise continued on without incident.
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