The Newsweek Daily Beast, has published an article covering the Carnival Triumph cruise ship fire and our maritime firm’s class-action lawsuit against Carnival Corp. over the company’s negligence in failing to provide a safe and sanitary environment onboard.
The feature, titled “Carnival From Hell,” offers a first-hand account into what really happened onboard the ill-fated ship by Matt and Melissa Crusan, two Carnival Triumph passengers and the lead plaintiffs in our class action suit.
The Crusans explained how they were forced to endure five days at sea without power, overflowing toilets and meager provisions. But as if that wasn’t horrendous enough, Melissa Crusan came down with food poisoning TWICE and spent hours in a hospital emergency room once the Triumph reached land in Mobile, Alabama.
LM&W’s founding maritime lawyer, Charles R. Lipcon, explained to Newsweek that the Triumph fire is just another indicator of the pervasive safety problems Carnival Corp. has been experiencing recently.
“I think [Carnival] just took a gamble,” said Attorney Lipcon, who is leading the class-action complaint, referring to the fact that the Triumph was allowed to set sail after previously reporting mechanical issues. “They played Russian roulette with their passengers, and they lost.”
The Triumph reported mechanical problems on the last itinerary before the Feb. 7 sailing when the fire erupted in the ship’s engine room. Another one of the company’s ships, the Carnival Splendor, also reported a fire in 2010, which left thousands of passengers without power as well. Costa Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corp., has also been denounced for the tragic Jan. 13, 2012 Costa Concordia capsizing accident, which led to the deaths of 32 people, as well as a fire that broke out the following month aboard the Costa Allegra, which caused the vessel to be scraped as a total loss.
The Carnival Triumph cruise ship fire accident has brought to light the lack of safety onboard cruise lines across the world. Anyone who was onboard the Triumph has the right to seek legal help to protect their rights.
