Seabourn ejects elderly couple from cruise ship
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An elderly couple was ejected from Seabourn’s Sojourn recently when the ship docked in Lisbon after the wife refused to participate in the mandatory safety drill.
Many announcements were made by the captain on the ships PA system advising passengers who are not in attendance on the compulsory muster would be removed from the ship and the Captain was not bluffing; the missing clients were asked to repack their bags, removed from their cabins and escorted off the gangway.
According to a report by influential site Cruise Critic, the couple, a 90-year-old man and his 84-year-old wife, were on the second leg of a cruise, meaning they had already taken part in a safety drill on the previous departure when they first boarded. The husband attended the drill but his wife declined, saying that she didn’t feel well and had done it previously.
Cruise lines have implemented far stricter policies in the wake of the Concordia incident with compulsory musters conducted prior to each departure once all passengers had been embarked. The ejection of these passengers merely highlights the length cruise lines are now prepared to go to in order to adhere to the new International Maritime Organization’s policies and the safety measures set by the cruise industry at large after the 13 January incident.
Cruise Critic further reported that this is the second incident since January’s Costa Concordia disaster in which a passenger has been ejected off a ship for not participating in the drill. Holland America went the same route in February debarking a passenger for muster drill non-compliance.
