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Vacation Safety: Let's say you're just cruising along...

By Megan Roth

Anyone kept up on the news lately? If so, you know that cruise ship safety has been a recent topic of conversation.

Some speculate that cruise ships are much safer than staying in a hotel or lofty resort as who is onboard the ship is known and controlled (thus limiting the chances for random acts of violence) while others believe the dangers of traveling on a cruise ship are much greater than those of traveling on dry land.

Regardless of where (and when) you travel, how safe a means-of-transportation is can be dependent upon who's traveling – meaning traveling with children carries certain risks that are often not considered when adults alone vacation.

But, for the purpose of simplicity, let's say we're going on an all-adult cruise to the Caribbean. What could go wrong here? I mean, we're all adults!

For starters, there's lots of eating and drinking on such cruises (isn't that what they're for?!). Some of the foods eaten may be not be stored/prepared in the best possible way and travelers may contract food poisoning (I know, right? As if the potential for sea sickness isn't bad enough…)

And, on top of that, there's the possibility in overindulging in alcohol as well…and we've both seen the way some ‘adults' act under such conditions – it'd almost be better to be on a cruise with children! And the childish behaviors of such intolerables may be brought out when put in certain situations (such as a Caribbean cruise). The booze on such trips often flows continuously, starting with Mimosas at breakfast/brunch and continuing throughout the day with Daiquiris, Mai Tais and other tropical delights.

And, as unfortunate as it is, not everyone can handle their booze (at least not as well as we'd like them to). In my humble opinion, I'd say alcohol consumption on cruise ships can get out of hand – people often consumer more than what's reasonable and lose control.

Which can result in college-style brawls, sickness and people losing their balance and falling overboard (yes, it has happened).

And, I suppose it's only fair to point out that passengers may fall overboard on their own accord (less the influence of alcohol). Such was the case in the incident that occurred just weeks ago, when an elderly couple was determined to have been lost at sea.

Same could be said for the woman who went missing just weeks before that…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXK7h5hFpKs

And she's not alone, folks. A similar case was reported just months before that and another is on record from two years prior…

Yes, traveling aboard a cruise ship has its perks; however, as can be seen, it can also be downright dangerous – even deadly.

And I won't even mention the potential for injury off-board the ship; some such injuries may be self-induced, some may be caused by violence and others may be the direct result of a simple mishap. Regardless, they're terrifying in the sense that you'll be in a new environment – an environment with different medical facilities and procedures (which can be scary when you need immediate medical attention but aren't quite certain how to go about getting it.

In the event that you do sustain an injury while cruising, act accordingly. Report your injury to the necessary personnel onboard. Make a written notice and keep hold of any relevant accident reports, claim letters or other documentation pertaining to the injury. If possible, take witness statements and gather their contact info as soon as possible so that you may touch base with them later if need be. Know that cruise ships and their insurance companies can be headstrong when it comes to defending their title and reputation; thus, it's important to make sure your lawyer is familiar and ‘onboard' with the issues surrounding maritime law (pun-intended).

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Megan Roth

Full post as published by Des Moines Personal Injury Lawyer on March 03, 2009 (boomark / email).