Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise submit health protocols to CDC looking to set sail again

By Nivedita Balu and Helen Coster

(Reuters) – Hoping to set sail again after a long halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. said on Monday they submitted a report to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) detailing health and safety protocols.

The cruise operators detailed 74 steps, including enhanced sanitation practices, controlling shore excursions and better protection for crew members, to protect guests once cruises resume.

Recommendations also include rigorous screening and testing before boarding and plans to address positive infection on board, the companies said.

In an interview with Reuters on Monday, which included the two cruise line chief executives and other members of a panel that developed the guidelines, Norwegian Chief Executive Frank Del Rio said he did not know how much Norwegian would need to pay to implement the panel’s recommendations.

“Put it in context, this is a drop in the bucket,” Del Rio said. “Whatever the number is, and I truly don’t know what it is and I don’t think [Royal Caribbean CEO] Richard [Fain] does either. We are at a zero revenue environment. This is a necessary step to return to service and we’re not really concerned about what the costs are.”

In July, the two companies announced a joint task force to help develop safety standards for restarting their businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

The cruise industry has taken a major hit from the pandemic, with some of the earliest large clusters of COVID-19 occurring aboard cruise ships.

The CDC first issued a no-sail order on March 14 for all cruise ships and has been extending it since.

Cruise operators have lost about half to two-thirds of their value so far this year. Their shares were last down between 4% and 6% as worries of a second lockdown amid rising coronavirus cases shook broader markets.

(Reporting by Helen Coster in New York and Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi and Dan Grebler)

Royal Caribbean liability for volcano deaths may turn on ‘act of God’ defense

By Tom Hals

(Reuters) – Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd’s potential liability for a deadly excursion to a volcanic island in New Zealand could hinge on whether the eruption was an unforeseeable “act of God,” according to maritime lawyers.

Cruise ship passengers were among the tourists on White Island on Monday when it erupted. While no lawsuits have yet been filed, legal experts said they expected action in U.S courts by injured passengers and families of those who died.

There were 47 people on the island at the time. Eight have been officially declared dead and more than 20 are being treated for severe burns. The New Zealand military was carrying out an operation to recover eight other bodies still on the island.

Royal Caribbean ticket terms posted on its website spell out that the company is not liable for any injury, death or loss of property caused by an act of God, as well as war, terrorism or other events beyond the company’s control.

Royal Caribbean will likely argue the disaster was an extraordinary event no one could reasonably foresee, said Robert Kritzman, an attorney with Baker Donelson in Miami.

“If a volcano were to erupt, clearly that isn’t negligence on anyone’s part, that’s nature,” said Kritzman, a former general counsel with Norwegian Cruise Line.

Royal Caribbean did not respond to questions about missing passengers or whether it told passengers of the risks of visiting the island.

“We grieve this tragic loss. We will to continue to offer our support and services to the families during this difficult time,” the company said in an email.

Part of the case will turn on what the cruise line knew or should have known and what they told passengers about indications of increased volcanic activity.

“There are tremors, there are earthquakes and people monitor that,” said Carlos Llinás Negret, an attorney with Nelson & Fraenkel who represents passengers. “It all depends on what the cruise knew, and when they knew it.”

Geological hazard tracker GeoNet raised the alert level for the White Island volcano in November and said on Dec. 3 that “the volcano may be entering a period where eruptive activity is more likely than normal.”

The cruise line described White Island as “one of the most active volcanoes in the world,” according to a cached version of its website. “Get close to the drama: Gas masks help you get near roaring steam vents, bubbling pits of mud, hot volcanic streams and the amazing lake of steaming acid,” it promised.

Virginia parents of one woman who was severely burned told a TV station that her daughter said she believed Royal Caribbean would not have let her visit the island if it were not safe.

The experts said in a typical shore excursion accident the cruise line tries to put blame on the third party that is hired to run the tour. On its website, Royal Caribbean does not identify the company that ran the White Island excursion.

Passengers would have to show Royal Caribbean did not take proper care to vet the operator, lawyers said.

But lawsuits face the added challenge of overcoming the argument the eruption was unforeseeable.

Norwegian Cruise Line was able to fend off a class action lawsuit about a large “freak wave” hitting one of its ships in 2005 by arguing it was an unforeseeable event. Regulators had concluded there was no wrongdoing by Norwegian.

Royal Caribbean is using the act of God defense against a class action about a powerful storm in 2016 that hit the ship Anthem of the Seas off the eastern United States. Passengers said the company knew of the risks of the storm, but tried to outrun it.

The dramatic description of the White Island tour on Royal Caribbean’s website will likely be a focus of any lawsuit, with lawyers seizing on it to show the company knew a disaster was possible, legal experts said. The company could argue passengers were fully informed of the dangers and received proper safety equipment.

“If they hand out gas masks that says automatically you know you have a risk,” said Bob Parks, a Miami attorney who represents passengers.

(Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; editing by Noeleen Walder and Grant McCool)