Articles Posted in Boating Accidents

What started as a welcomed getaway has ended with thousands of cruise ship passengers and crew members stranded in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico in foul, sickening conditions.

There are reports of rooms sloshing with human waste and four-hour long lines for limited food rations.

Our Fort Lauderdale cruise injury lawyers understand that while the Carnival Triumph ship is slowly towed by tugboats into an Alabama port, the company’s public relations team is in crisis mode, trying to spin this as an exceedingly rare occurrence.

Certainly, it’s far from the pristine images these companies want to project, but it’s not really all that rare – at least with regard to the kind of fire that caused this mess in the first place. Nearly the exact same situation happened aboard another Carnival cruise ship off the coast of Mexico in 2010. In the interim, there have actually been 10 cruise ship fires, and those are only what was reported by news crews. In a number of cases, including this most recent, the ship became either partially or completely disabled.

Recent Congressional hearings held on the issue of cruise ship passenger safety revealed that nearly 80 cruise ship fires erupted aboard occupied ships over the last 20 years.

In one case, a ship’s engine actually failed and caused it to float adrift in pirate-infested waters off the coast of Indonesia.

Of course, if you were listening to the cruise lines, you would never know about any of these incidents. Many times, the PR flack will either downplay the severity of an onboard fire or even outright deny it happened.

In fact, the industry does a stellar job of selling the entire experience as a safe and affordable family vacation. Certainly, no one would deny it is cheap – but that’s in large part due to the fact that many of these firms are incorporated in Third World countries, which means they can get away with paying their crews low wages and few benefits. It also means they can flout not only federal labor laws and taxes, but also standard safety regulations.

So even ships with English names departing from American ports may have no obligation to abide by U.S. laws.

It’s worth noting that a ship has to pass an annual inspection in whatever country it plans to enter, but the inspector for the U.S. – the Coast Guard – is unfortunately woefully unequipped and underfunded.

In addition to fires, mass illness is also a major problem aboard these vessels. In many cases, ill crew members are loathed to speak up or take the day off because they know they will simply not be paid. Cruise lines often blame passengers for the quick spread of these viruses, saying many don’t wash their hands. But the Centers for Disease Control has clearly indicated that contaminated water and food are the primary source of these potentially deadly ailments.

And just as the crews are worked tirelessly and with little pay, the ships themselves are often pushed to the brink. That’s because a ship that isn’t at sea isn’t raking in any money.

This situation is prompting Carnival to dock the Triumph for at least the next two months – a move they no doubt made begrudgingly and only after heavy incoming fire from the national media.
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A scuba accident in Pompano Beach off the Hillsboro Inlet killed one woman on Thanksgiving Day, according to CBS Miami.

The 54-year-old woman was in town from New Mexico with her nephew when the accident happened, reports the Broward Sheriff’s Office. It all happened when the victim and the rest of the group was heading back to shore from a dive outing. The catamaran, The Coral Princess, flipped over. Witnesses say the vessel was caught from behind by an 8 or 10 feet wave that flipped it over.

“They just went on this fun trip together to just do dives,” said Dani Moscehlla, a spokeswoman with the sheriff’s office. “So this is especially tragic that it was on Thanksgiving and it ended in tragedy.”

Our Palm Beach scuba accident attorneys understand that dive operators have an obligation to keep customers safe. This counts when dealing with boating, scuba diving, jet skiing and even parasailing. These companies need to take all of the proper safety precautions to keep you safe!

According to the owner of the boat, with the South Florida Diving Headquarters, the crew is spending their time helping the victims to recover.

The accident is still being investigated by officials.

While the company is “doing all they can” to assist those affected by this catastrophic accident, it’s easy to see that this same “can-do” philosophy should have been applied before the boat ever left shore. It’s important for these owners to make sure that all of their equipment is up-to-date and safe, that their employees are thoroughly trained in the duties they’re executing and that all of the safety devices needed for such a voyage are provided to the customers.

In 2009, there were close to 3,500 people who were injured and another 750 who were killed in boating accidents in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The same goes for activities like scuba diving. Companies are required to make sure that all equipment is safe and operational while also making sure that all workers are properly trained and certified. The truth of the matter is that scuba fatalities are oftentimes completely preventable. It just takes a little awareness to keep them from happening.

The top three root causes leading to diver fatalities:

-Pre-existing disease or pathology in the diver.

-Poor buoyancy control.

-Rapid ascent/ violent water movement.

Before choosing a company to dive with, make sure you do you research. Check out their background. Take a look at accident reports, look into the maintenance of their equipment and check out the credentials of their employees. It’s a move that could prevent a potentially catastrophic accident.
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We live in South Florida and we’re provided with a year-long opportunity to hit the waters off our beautiful coastline.

Unfortunately, we also face year-long risks for boating accidents, which can be quite serious. Take the recent Delray Beach boating accident for example. In this accident, a young man was thrown from the boat and right into a navigation marker. The driver of that boat has been charges with Boating Under the Influence (BUI), according to CBS12. The boater died from head trauma, severe internal injuries and broken ribs.

He is currently on trial for the BUI charge and for killing his fellow boater. At the time of the accident, he returned a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of 0.13, close to twice the legal limit. If he’s found guilty, then he could be sentenced to 15 years behind bars.

Our Delray Beach boating accident lawyers understand that there were close to 30 reported boating accidents in Broward County in 2010. These accidents gave Broward County the dubious honor of being the state’s sixth most dangerous for these kinds of incidents, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The only counties to rank worse than us in the entire state of Florida were Lee, Pinellas, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Monroe.

Boaters are especially warned during the hours of 12:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. This is when a majority of the 2010 boating accidents occurred.

So what are the top causes of boating accidpinellasents in Florida?

1.) Collision with a Fixed Object.

2.) Collision with Another Vessel.

3.) Flooding/Swamping

4.) Falls Overboard

5.) Grounding

Boaters between the ages of 36 and 50 were most likely to be in operation of a boat without any form of formal boating education. This group was closely followed by those ages 51 and older.

Simple Boating Tips, from the Broward County Sheriff’s Office:

-Make sure you check the weather forecast before heading out.

-Make sure there as many life jackets on the boat as there are people.

-Make sure there is always a working marine radio on board at all times.

-Complete a boater’s education course before heading out.

-Make sure that all children under the age of 6 are wearing a life jacket at all times.

-Ventilate after fueling. Open hatches, run the blower, and check for fuel fumes before starting the engine.

-Make sure that you have an emergency kit on your vessel, including flares, a first-aid kit, drinking water and sun screen. Bring a flashlight and extra batteries, too!

-Tell someone you’re going boating beforehand.

-Avoid drinking and boating. About a third of all boating fatalities involve a boat operator who is under the influence of alcohol.
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Palm Beach County’s park ban on certain vessels and access to boat ramps violates a state law that is intended to preserve this access for all boaters, according to the Sun Sentinel.

Earlier this year officials in Palm Beach County banned personal watercraft, including Jet Skis, Wave Runners and other similar vessels, from using Sunset Lake in Boca Raton. Officials were worried about the risks for boating accidents in Boca Raton before this ban was in place.

After strong opposition from owners of the personal watercraft, officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conversation Commission determined that the recent ban did in fact violate a state law that was enacted to protect vessels from rules that are specific to them and didn’t apply to all boats. State officials are looking to toss the County’s law overboard.

“We have as much right to use [the lake] as any boat owner,” said Paul Jaffe, a local personal-watercraft owner.

Our Boca Raton watercraft accident lawyers understand that a state law, passed back in 2000, prohibited rules that were specific to certain types of watercraft. Sunset Lake is considered to be “waters of the state” and cannot be regulated by county jurisdictions. Although the ban was set to help to reduce the risks of accidents for specific boaters, it cannot remain as it discriminates.

Right now, attorneys with the county are reviewing the state’s claims and are figuring out if there’s a legal risk or not. If they find they’re at risk for violating state laws with the ban, then government officials say they will adjust the law to make it fit.

Recently, the county dished out nearly $1 million to improve that park. Some of the biggest improvements included new docks, a new boat ramp and additional parking near the lake.

When the improvements were concluded and the lake was reopened, it reopened with a sign stating the new prohibitions. According to county officials, safety was the main concern of this ban and they felt that by keeping personal watercraft out of Sunset Lake, the area would be safer and boating accidents would be reduced. Previous accidents fueled this decision. There were approximately 125 accidents involving personal watercraft in Palm Beach County in 2010.

Officials worried that the risks were too high at Sunset Lake and boaters were extremely likely to get into an accident with fast vessels skipping over wakes and weaving through other boating traffic. They also said that the lake was just too small to keep these watercrafts in the game.

The American Watercraft Association even stepped in and voiced opposition to the ban. The association says that speed limits would have been an acceptable solution, but banning these watercrafts is completely unjust and violates state law.
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We’ve been discussing the risks of alcohol-related car accidents and other similar accidents on our South Florida Car Accident Attorney Blog. We’ve been talking about these dangers because even though Spring Break is now on the downside in South Florida, this is the time of year that continues to bring an overwhelming number of residents and tourists to our coastlines.

What we’re going to discuss now are the risks for jet ski accidents in Fort Lauderdale and elsewhere, especially during Spring Break and into early April. In Florida, there were 125 personal watercraft accidents reported in 2010. Of these reports, 81 were accidents involving privately owned personal watercraft while the others were rental personal watercraft vessels, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). These statistics are alarming, especially knowing that Florida was ranked as the most dangerous state in the country for these kinds of accidents in 2009. During that year, nearly 70 people were killed in boating accidents in the state of Florida. This is about 20 more fatalities than the second most dangerous state in the country — California.

Our Fort Lauderdale injury lawyers would like to remind both residents and Spring Breakers that the rental of personal watercraft is done under strict Florida laws. These laws are in place to help keep the rider safe, the beach-goers safe and other boaters safe. Rental companies are required by law to follow the laws. If you feel that a personal watercraft rental company has cheated these laws and has contributed to an accident, contact an experienced attorney to help you to review your rights.

Florida State Laws, Personal Watercraft Rental:

-All riders must wear an approved, non-inflatable personal flotation device (PFD).

-The driver of the vessel is required to wear the engine cutoff switch lanyard at all times.

-There are nighttime restrictions to personal watercraft. They are not permitted to be driven from 30 minutes after sunset to 30 minutes before sunrise.

-Personal watercraft operators can be cited for reckless driving. When driving near other watercraft, you’re required to avoid swerving at the last moment or swerving in a way that creates an unnecessary wake to another vessel.

-You have to be at least 14-years-old to drive a personal watercraft.

-You have to be at least 18-years-old to rent a personal watercraft.

-It is considered a second-degree misdemeanor if someone allows an underage driver to operate a personal watercraft.

Rental facilities are also required to ensure that all operators are properly identified before allowing them to hop in the driver’s seat. Renters are also required to make sure that each vessel is equipped with the proper safety equipment. They’re prohibited from renting any vessel that is not seaworthy, exceeds the recommended engine horsepower or exceeds load capacity.

Remember, there were five personal watercraft accidents in Palm Beach County in 2010, one in which resulted in a death and three caused injuries.
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There were roughly 4,600 boating accidents in South Bay and elsewhere in 2010, according to Joel Goebel, commander of the St. Lucie Power Squadron. Of these 2010 accidents, more than 670 people died, another 3,155 were injured and there was nearly $40 million in property damage. According to The Palm Beach Post, the St. Lucie Power Squadron is a nonprofit organization that’s sole duty is to help increase the safety of boaters in the area. Ultimately, they hope to eliminate all controllable boating risks. Goebel has been working to achieve this goal since he joined the squadron back in 1976.

“(The) majority of these accidents happened on boats involving people who hadn’t had any boat training,” said Goebel.

Our South Bay boating accident attorneys understand that the squadron helps to provide education to boaters through the training and expertise of its 135 members. Boating education is one of the primary factors in avoiding a South Florida boating accident. The squadron offers public seminars to help pass on safe boating practices. The members teach boaters about weather, safety equipment, channel and navigation knowledge.

Goebel is currently working as commander to help boaters navigate by using the stars. He says if your boat’s electronics fail, you need to have a backup plan.

As Goebel says, boating education is critical in avoiding potentially fatal boating accidents on the water. In the state of Florida, there were nearly 700 boating accidents reported in 2010, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Of these accidents, there were nearly 80 fatalities. A large number of these fatalities happened as victims fell overboard and drowned. Lots of these fatalities could have been prevented if more boaters wore life jackets. For this reason, Florida Fish and Wildlife continues to increase efforts to reduce these accidents through education and enforcement of wearing life jackets.

Safe boating is a choice. To help boaters to make the right choice, Florida Fish and Wildlife, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), West Marine, Bombardier Recreational Products, Inc. and the National Safe Boating Council have all launched statewide safe boating campaigns as a part of a national imperative. Here in the state, we have the “Wear It Florida” campaign that is used to encourage all boaters to wear life jackets whenever they’re on the water. The campaign also teaches boaters about the convenience and ease of relatively unknown inflatable life jackets.

Florida’s 2010 Boating Accident Review:

-There are nearly 941,600 registered vessels.

-There were nearly 700 reported accidents in 2010.

-Nearly 70 percent of the operators who were involved in these accidents had no formal boating education.

-Monroe County had to most number of reported accidents and injuries with more than 75 accidents, 7 deaths and more than 55 injuries.

-The main cause of death is falling overboard and drowning (60 percent). These kinds of accidents are becoming more and more common.

-Nearly 40 percent of all boating fatalities that were recorded as drownings occurred on vessels that were less than 18 ft. in length.

-The most boating fatalities were witnessed in May (13 deaths).

-More than 20 percent of the reported boating fatalities were drug or alcohol-related.

-Nearly 90 percent of the boaters who died during the year were male.

-More than 20 percent of the fatalities involved non-motorized vessels.
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There is a new safety policy in effect, created to help reduce the risks of cruise ship injuries in Fort Lauderdale and elsewhere. Recently, a number of cruise lines and safety organizations announced that passengers must participate in a mandatory muster drill before their ship can depart, according to the Travel Market Report.

The Passenger Shipping Association, the European Cruise Council and the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) report that all ships are now partaking in the new muster policy. Now, passengers who board the ship must no undergo an on-board safety briefing, either as a group or individually, before the ship sets sail, in order to meet the new guidelines set forth by the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea.

Going on a cruise ship vacation is an escape for many people. However, safety issues are still a legitimate concern. Cruise ship passengers and employees are required to keep safe traveling a top priority. Our Fort Lauderdale cruise ship injury attorneys understand that cruise ship voyages can turn disastrous very quickly. It’s important, as a passenger, to be ready to deal with any dangers that come your way. These new muster drills will help to equip passengers with the knowledge necessary to deal with problems at sea.

The new policy took effect on the 27th of January at the Cruise Industry Operational Safety Review. The new policy was the result of the Concordia shipwreck that happened in January.

Since the January accident, a number of cruise ship companies have been in touch with passengers on upcoming voyages to reassure them about their safety procedures and policies.

“Most of my clients, whether new or first time, have no safety concerns. To see the cruise lines step up and enforce stricter controls is good, but really this is a non-issue,” said Lisa Silvestri CTC, ECC, owner, of Silvestri Travel, one of Florida’s TRAVELSAVERS agencies.

The first announcement came from Royal Caribbean. The company said it is joining forces with the Resolve Maritime Academy to deliver new simulator-based navigation and safety training tools for employees of the cruise ships.

During the second quarter of 2012, the training will be available to employees of all of Royal Caribbean’s brands — Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises. Employees will undergo this training program at the new training center in Fort Lauderdale.

Silvestri says that her customers aren’t too concerned with cruise ship safety, but do say that it’s reassuring to see cruise companies enforce stricter policies. These new policies will help to offer passengers with more info regarding the ship’s company and its employees’ procedures.
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International reports of the tragic Costa Concordia cruise ship wreck — and the shameful actions of the vessel’s captain — have not only sunk future cruise sales, but also the belief that a captain and crew will do everything possible to protect passengers.

Catastrophic cruise ship wrecks like the one that happened off the coast of Italy (in which 17 people died and another 15 are still missing) are extremely rare.
However, many other dangers lurk that could be a recipe for a Fort Lauderdale cruise ship accident resulting in serious illness or injury to passengers.

Our Fort Lauderdale cruise ship accident attorneys know that dozens of accidents and illnesses are reported on cruise ships each year. The actual numbers are likely much higher, as some of these instances may never be reported.

Customers who expect a carefree vacation may find the trip more resembles a nightmare. Cruise ships can sometimes be especially prone to infectious diseases, due to the close quarters for sleeping, dining and swimming. If the cruise ship staff doesn’t employ proper sanitation measures, passengers are even more at risk.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the Vessel Sanitation Program requires each ship to report the number of gastrointestinal illnesses found by the ship’s medical staff when it’s arriving in the U.S. from a foreign port. If that number is higher than 2 percent for passengers and crew, a separate notification is required.

An outbreak is classified as an illness that involves more than 100 passengers or more than 3 percent of the total number on board who have reported symptoms of diarrhea or some other stomach illness.

Of the 14 cruise liner outbreaks reported by the CDC last year, 10 involved the Norovirus, which is an infection that lasts several days and is characterized by diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain. Most people can recover without treatment, but for babies, the elderly and people with other underlying diseases, it can cause severe dehydration and illness.

The infection is highly contagious, and is usually spread by food or water that is contaminated with fecal matter during preparation.

Another two cases from last year involved cruise ship passengers who were sickened with E. coli, a bacterial infection caused by contaminated food or water. It can result in anything from cramps, diarrhea and vomiting to life-threatening kidney failure, particularly for children and the elderly.

In 2012, there have already been two cruise ship outbreaks reported.

In addition to illnesses, injuries can unfortunately occur on a cruise ship.

In the Costa Concordia case, more than 4,000 people were aboard when the ship crashed. The captain is reported to have abandoned the ship, leaving passengers to fend for their own survival. Recovery crews continue to search for bodies, while the captain remains under house arrest on charges of manslaughter and abandoning ship.

Perhaps a more common problem for cruise ship passengers is slip-and-fall accidents, particularly in cruise ship showers, or on slippery decks or walkways. A wet floor is dangerous enough. One that is moving can be even more treacherous.

Many of these illnesses and injuries are treated on board the ship by the cruise line’s medical staff, who are required to offer you reasonable treatment under the circumstances. However, some cruise lines will take liberties by interpreting the law in a very broad sense.
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