Horror Cruise Spawns Passenger Lawsuits: Royal Caribbean's Anthem of the Seas Caught In Storm

Royal Caribbean Cruises is facing a pair of lawsuits from passengers who allege that they were injured and put in danger when a luxury cruise liner was caught in a severe storm earlier this month.

Royal Caribbean’s 4,180-passenger cruise ship, Anthem of the Seas, reportedly faced 30-foot waves and 74 mph wind gusts when it traveled into a winter storm off the coast of the Carolinas on Feb. 7.

Four people suffered “minor injuries” during the incident, Royal Caribbean Cruises stated.

• See related article: Cruise Ship Battered During Storm, 4 Injured

The experience was captured on video by employees of Efferent Media, a New York-based digital marketing agency who were aboard the ship.

One of the passengers - Delaware resident Bruce Simpson – is claiming that he was hurled 18 feet into a door during the storm, knocking him unconscious and giving him a concussion in addition to several other injuries, according to court documents.

Simpson filed a lawsuit last Thursday in U.S. District Court in Miami, ABC News reported.

He is seeking recovery of unspecified damages that include alleged physical injury, physical pain and suffering, impairment and economic insecurity,

“We want to send a warning to cruise lines that they shouldn’t take risks with the lives of their passengers,” Simpson’s attorney told ABC News. “We believe Royal Caribbean was under financial pressure to start the cruise on time. They took a calculated risk when they sent their passengers into the storm, and we don’t think the passengers should be the ones that pay for Royal Caribbean’s lack of judgement.”

In addition to Simpson’s allegations, another passenger who reportedly suffered injuries during the storm - Frank DeLuca, of Cinnaminson – is seeking class action status for a potential lawsuit.

“Royal Caribbean showed an absolute lack of respect for the lives of its passengers,” DeLuca’s attorney told Reuters.com. “A refund and a future cruise credit is insulting for what the passengers went through.”

• See related article: Anthem of Sea Passengers Arrested For Smoking Pot; Horror Cruise Returns To Port

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration alert was issued on the Friday before the storm at 1 p.m. for “developing hurricane-force winds” in the area, a spokesperson told USA Today.

Federal forecasters from NOAA’s Ocean Prediction Center had warned of a strong storm in the Atlantic for four days before the storm, according to USA Today.

In a social media post, Royal Carribbean called the weather conditions an “unexpectedly severe storm.”

“The forecast would likely have impacted AnthemoftheSeas’ original itinerary,” Royal Carribbean stated on its Twitter page.

A Coast Guard spokesman told the Washington Post that no distress calls were issued by the ship’s crew during the storm.

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