[Travelandtourism] Elderly couple forced to leave Seabourn ship after missed drill - Travel Weekly

[Reese]

Seabourn is standing by its decision to force an elderly couple to disembark 
the Seabourn Sojourn on May 12, after the wife missed the ship's mandatory 
passenger safety drill before departure from Lisbon.

The California couple had booked a 20-day, three-leg cruise from Rome to 
Hamburg, and had participated in the drill when the ship left Rome on May 4. 
At the start of the second leg from Lisbon, another drill was announced and 
held, per industry policy.

But the 84-year-old woman wasn't feeling well, and since she had 
participated in the drill before leaving Rome, she decided to skip it, said 
her agent, Steven Shulem, president of Strictly Vacations in Santa Barbara. 
Her 90-year-old husband attended both drills.

Within an hour of the Lisbon drill, the two found themselves standing with 
their luggage on the pier as the Sojourn sailed off.

"I think Seabourn could have handled this differently," Shulem said.

According to his client's account, when the elderly lady didn't show at the 
drill, a crew member was sent to her room. She told that person she wasn't 
well.

"Fifteen minutes later, an officer was at their door, telling her the couple 
needed to disembark," Shulem said. "The staff packed them up and put them 
off."

Passenger safety drills have taken on new urgency - and have mandated strict 
compliance rules - since the Costa Concordia shipwreck on Jan. 13, which 
claimed the lives of 32 people off the Tuscan coast.

A Seabourn spokesman said: "Mandatory attendance at the emergency drill 
conducted prior to every voyage is a strict company policy to ensure the 
safety of everyone on board. No exceptions are permitted."

He added: "A guest who is too ill to attend may attend a make-up drill when 
their health permits." Seabourn did not elaborate on why that option wasn't 
offered in this case.

Shulem said he likely will relate this experience to other cruise clients so 
they are fully aware of the ramifications if they don't show up at a drill.

"Everyone knows the story of the Concordia," Shulem said, adding that "it's 
just common sense" to attend.

CLIA said it provides travel agent members with information to assist 
customers in preparing for a cruise, and part of that information includes 
the importance of participating in muster drills as well as reviewing safety 
material and videos provided in passenger staterooms.

Mike McGarry, the association's senior vice president of public affairs, 
said, "In February CLIA's member lines, along with the European Cruise 
Council and Passenger Shipping Association, voluntarily adopted a policy 
that calls for the mandatory muster of embarking passengers prior to 
departure from port. This policy has been communicated widely to a global 
audience."

Shulem said that the couple, who are long-time clients, cruise once a year. 
They were assisted in Lisbon by Strictly Vacations' 24-hour emergency 
services vendor, since Shulem was aboard the Oceania Riviera's christening 
cruise when the incident occurred.

"They said they'll never cruise Seabourn again," he said.

Holland America Line, a sister brand to Seabourn, in February debarked a 
passenger for refusing to participate in a drill. Both lines are Carnival 
Corp. brands, as is Costa Cruises, owner of the Concordia. Home of the low 
price guaranty

Maurice Shackelford
http://www.peachtreetravel.net
(phone)770-280-5029
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