RSS MAD

Medical Care on Cruise Ships

Video clip from Fox 11 Ten O'Clock News

View Clip [Windows Media]

Airdate: May 5, 2008
Subject: Medical Care on Cruise Ships
Program: Fox 11 Ten O'Clock News

Cruise line pleads guilty in deadly blast

Five years after the deadliest cruise industry accident in more than a decade, Norwegian Cruise Line has agreed to plead guilty to criminal negligence in the SS Norway explosion.

Federal prosecutors on Friday charged Norwegian Cruise Line with gross negligence almost five years after a boiler explosion on the historic SS Norway killed eight crew members and seriously injured 10 others in the Port of Miami.

The U.S. attorney's office said Norwegian agreed to plead guilty to the criminal charge, which alleges the cruise line operated the vessel in a ``grossly negligent manner that endangered the lives, limbs and property of the persons on board.''

Norwegian is liable for at least $500,000 in criminal penalties for the deadliest accident on a U.S.-based ocean liner in more than a decade. The cruise line also has agreed to carry out safety inspections of its vessels with an independent consultant.

Coast Guard Rear Admiral Robert Branham called the May 25, 2003, explosion a ``preventable tragedy.''

''Hopefully, this case will send a message to the maritime industry that marine safety should be the paramount consideration in maintaining their vessels,'' he said in a statement.

The cruise line said Friday evening that it has cooperated with federal authorities since the explosion and will continue to do so. ''The safety and security of our passengers and crew has been and always will be of the utmost importance,'' Norwegian's statement said.

A National Transportation Safety Board report on the accident, quietly completed in November, showed NCL engineers had expressed concerns since the late 1990s about the condition of the four boilers that powered the elegant ship. The massive high-pressure boilers, each holding 20 tons of 528-degree water, had a history of cracks, leaks, corrosion and repairs.

''We must realize that we have reached a point where the operation of the vessel is not safe,'' one unnamed NCL port engineer wrote in a 1998 e-mail to the company's vice president of ship operations, the NTSB report said. The engineer cited ''numerous boiler tube failures'' that were subsequently repaired.

PATCH JOBS

The NTSB found the primary cause of the explosion was the fracture of a weld on a seam of a high-pressure drum. The scalding water flashed into steam, swept through the engine spaces and some adjacent crew berthing areas and killed eight crew members while injuring nearly a dozen others. No passengers were hurt.

Investigators also found questionable welds and crack-repair efforts; inconsistent water chemistry that led to corrosion; inadequate inspections from both NCL and Bureau Veritas, an international inspection agency, and an operating schedule that exposed the aging boilers to extreme thermal stresses.

In January and July 2002, a year before the boiler burst, NCL port engineers e-mailed NCL management with concerns that the ship's routes and busy schedules forced crew to fire up and cool down the boilers more rapidly than the operating manual called for.

The report was also critical of NCL's handling of persistent cracks in the boilers, which first appeared in original welds in the 1970s. Cracks were ground down until boiler walls reached a minimum allowable thickness then built back up with weld repairs. The length and width of the welds, the NTSB found, probably accelerated pitting and cracking.

At some point, copper -- an unacceptable metal for repairs -- also appeared to have been deliberately applied to cracks on the boiler that exploded.

''The only explanation for the presence of the copper is that it was introduced to mask the crack, impede inspection and avoid necessary repairs,'' the report said.

Investigators also found a lengthy gap in formal inspections, ``even though it was known that they were susceptible to cracking and were in fact cracked in 1996.''

The report found that the header, the part of boiler No. 23 that failed, had not had a material test or appropriate visual inspection since 1990.

The cruise line was charged in an ''information,'' not a criminal complaint or indictment. That means Norwegian executives and prosecutors negotiated the misdemeanor charge.

''Charges such as those today are necessary to show that companies operating and managing ships have a duty to take reasonable measures to assure the safety of all onboard -- passengers and crew,'' said U.S. Attorney R. Alexander Acosta.

In addition, the NTSB noted that NCL had agreed to improve its fleet emergency response, safety measures and maintenance records. Though few ships, aside from Naval vessels, still rely on large high-pressure boilers for primary power, smaller low-pressure ones are routinely used to heat water or for other shipboard systems.

FAMILIES CAN'T SUE

Miami attorney Charles Lipcon, who represented many of the victims and is the author of the new book, Unsafe on the High Seas, praised the criminal charge.

''I'm pleased to see that the U.S. attorney stepped up to the plate and got involved,'' he said. But he called it ''unfortunate'' that the crew members and their families were not able to press civil lawsuits against Norwegian in federal court in Miami.

The dead and injured seamen were mostly Filipino. Their contracts with Norwegian called for settling claims in arbitration, so their lawsuits were dismissed from federal court in Miami. The cruise line negotiated settlements afterward.

A cruise industry representative called the criminal case a strong signal.

''We take safety very seriously as an industry, and we hope this gets resolved and look forward to a resolution,'' said Michael Crye, executive vice president of the Cruise Lines International Association, a trade group.

The SS Norway had a storied past. It was launched as the SS France in 1960. At 1,035 feet, it was the longest passenger ship afloat and could carry more than 2,000. It was too long and too wide for the Panama Canal.

Deemed unprofitable in 1974, the ocean-liner was mothballed in France. In 1979, Norwegian Cruise Line bought it for $18 million -- its value in scrap metal -- and revamped it at a cost of $120 million. After a ''farewell cruise'' to Europe in 2001, the SS Norway returned to Miami for seven-day cruises in the eastern Caribbean. It was among the last ocean-liners powered by high-pressure steam boilers.

It has been out of commission since the boiler explosion five years ago. The company has since sold it for scrap.

The Miami Herald
By JAY WEAVER AND CURTIS MORGAN

Cruise-industry giant Carnival challenges state's fuel-fee probe

Cruise-industry giant Carnival Corp. is challenging state Attorney General Bill McCollum's investigation into its controversial fuel surcharge by claiming the extra passenger fee already was approved when Gov. Charlie Crist was attorney general.

Records reviewed by the Orlando Sentinel show representatives for Carnival approached then-Attorney General Crist's office in October 2006 seeking approval to charge a new fee that would help Carnival absorb skyrocketing fuel costs. At least one internal meeting on the issue was scheduled by lawyers in the Attorney General's Office on Oct. 5 that year.

McCollum's office said it has been deluged with complaints about the surcharge, which has turned out to be as much as $70 per passenger. But the Attorney General's Office "expressly approved" the fee nearly 18 months ago, Carnival lawyer Curtis J. Mase wrote in a letter to investigators leading the current probe by McCollum's office.

Mase also wrote that Carnival was told "that the approval came from the highest level" of Crist's office.

Five days after that Oct. 5, 2006, meeting, the Republican Party of Florida reported receiving checks totaling $250,000 from two Carnival subsidiaries: Holland America Line and Princess Tours.

Businesses across all industries were at the time pouring record amounts of money into the Republican Party, which was paying for television advertisements, campaign staff and more to help Crist get elected governor.

The twin $125,000 checks are the largest donations that Miami-based Carnival or any of its subsidiaries have made to the Florida GOP since 1996, the earliest year for which electronic records are available.

Carnival said Tuesday that the donations were unrelated to the conversations with Crist's office about the fuel surcharge. "Any contribution by any of our brands to the Republican Party of Florida has no correlation whatsoever to interactions with the AG's office," Carnival spokeswoman Jennifer de la Cruz said in an e-mail.

Paul Huck, a former deputy attorney general under Crist who was involved in the 2006 discussions, said Tuesday in an e-mail that any suggestion of a quid pro quo from Carnival was "offensive" to the lawyers involved in the issue. "I am confident that if such a bargain had been even hinted at during their communications with Carnival, Carnival would have been literally and figuratively shown the door," he said.

Surcharge conditions

Carnival representatives approached the Attorney General's Office about the fuel surcharge to make sure the fee would comply with a 1997 agreement between the state and major cruise lines regarding what they can charge on top of their advertised fares.

Huck said that, after meeting with Carnival, lawyers in the Attorney General's Office recommended to him that the cruise company be allowed to levy a fuel surcharge under three conditions: It had to be temporary; it had to be based on actual fuel-cost increases; and it had to be conspicuously disclosed to consumers before they purchased a ticket.

"The notion was to take into account the reality of increasing fuel prices but at the same time to ensure that the full and conspicuous disclosure of the surcharge was being made to the consumer before he or she made a decision to go ahead and buy a ticket," Huck said in his Tuesday e-mail. Huck eventually became Crist's general counsel in the governor's office but left to join a private law firm in February.

Huck said he authorized the decision and that, to his knowledge, Crist's approval was not sought. Crist said Tuesday that he did not recall any discussions with or about Carnival.

Retroactively applied

A spokeswoman for the Attorney General's Office, where McCollum succeeded Crist in January 2007, said this week that Carnival's surcharge went beyond the agreement reached with Crist's office in 2006.

That's because when Carnival ultimately announced the surcharge in November 2007 -- a $5 a day charge up to $70 per person or $140 per stateroom on all cruises departing as of Feb. 1 -- it required even customers who had already booked their trips to pay the new charge, though they were also given the option to cancel their reservations without penalty.

The Attorney General's Office says that violates even the conditions set in October 2006 because it wasn't adequately disclosed ahead of time to consumers. "We never agreed nor acquiesced in any way to a retroactive application to previously ticketed passengers," Robert Julian, a lawyer in the office's economic-crimes division, wrote in a Jan. 16 letter to Carnival.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., which followed Carnival in adopting a retroactive surcharge, has already settled with McCollum's office and agreed to refund $21 million in surcharges to customers charged even after they booked.

But Carnival has so far refused to back down. Carnival's lawyers say the company has met all the criteria outlined under Crist's administration.

The company has, for instance, pointed out in correspondence with the state that its brochures warned customers of the possibility of fuel surcharges. It has also told the Attorney General's Office that it intends to eliminate the surcharge once the price of crude oil drops below $70 a barrel.

Carnival spokeswoman de la Cruz said the cruise operator intends to eliminate the charge once fuel has spent 30 days trading below $70 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Light, sweet crude oil closed at $101.22 a barrel Tuesday.

Carnival has already suggested to McCollum's office that it could send refunds to passengers who had already paid in full for their trips when the surcharge was announced, according to the state. But McCollum's office has insisted that any refunds must also apply to customers who had paid deposits only.

Carnival says it would forfeit $40 million if it has to refund the surcharge to all previously booked passengers.

Orlando Sentinel
By Jason Garcia, Sentinel Staff Writer
March 26, 2008

Veteran Maritime Attorney Reveals Horrors That Occur Aboard Cruise Ships

Cruise lines are more focused on making a profit than protecting passengers, says a veteran maritime attorney, who says vacationers must take steps to protect themselves from the crimes and tragedies that could befall them at sea.

"More than 12 million people a year take cruises. What they don't know is that the cruise lines only focus on their own bottom line, not on keeping passengers safe," says Charles Lipcon, author of "Unsafe on the High Seas -- Your Guide to a Safer Cruise," available in bookstores and online at http://www.unsafeonthehighseas.com ($14.95).

"This book reveals all of the dirty secrets the cruise lines don't want you to know about," says Lipcon, a leading expert in maritime law for over 30 years.

Lipcon explains the cruise lines make a profit of over $1 billion per year, but do not pay a dime of federal income tax due to the "flags of convenience" they fly. He says because their vessels are not registered in the United States, cruise lines can avoid being subject to U.S. labor and tax laws.

According to Lipcon, out of the 206 crimes aboard cruise ships that were actually reported from 2003 to 2006, 86 percent were [cruise ship] sexual assaults. Lipcon says children as young as 12 have been lured into the bowels of the ship and sexually assaulted by crew members.

Lipcon advises passengers to stay in public areas, set rules for their children, use all locks on the cabin door and only drink beverages they have witnessed being prepared.

If passengers do become a victim of a cruise ship crime, Lipcon recommends taking pictures of the crime scene and the victim, demand that gloves and booties be worn by anyone entering the crime scene, and to immediately contact the FBI.

Above is a copy of our press release that was listed on hundreds of web sites on March 19, 2008.

When Adventure Tourism Kills

By SIOBHAN MORRISSEY
TIME.com, in partnership with CNN

No one goes on an adventure tour with the thought that he won't make it back alive. The whole point is to push the envelope and live to tell the tale. It's unclear what Markus Groh thought when he signed up for a late February dive that could put him face-to-face with killer sharks spanning 18 feet in length — without a cage to separate him from the man-eaters. He surely didn't expect to end up dead. But the 49-year-old attorney from Austria, died on Feb. 24 after being bitten in the leg while swimming with the sharks in the Bahamas.

Every year hundreds of people die while living life to the fullest — battling white-water rapids, climbing the world's tallest mountain peak, descending to the depths of the ocean. These extreme sports are inherently dangerous and you take your chances. Or do you? "One of the things about these high-risk activities is that if you're going to participate in them you assume a certain kind of risk," says Prof. Lyrissa Lidsky, who teaches tort law at the University of Florida. In the case of Groh, the question is whether the tour operator failed to use reasonable care when he took a group of tourists diving for sharks without using cages. "Is the thing that killed him something that you normally associate with shark watching?" Lidsky asks, "Or, is it something that could have been avoided had the company used reasonable care?"

There are other factors to consider. "It's the first fatality that we have reported involving a dive where the host is specifically bringing in the animal by chumming [feeding the sharks with chopped up fish]," says George Burgess, director of the International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida. "Putting people in the water with these large animals is a risk. It's not a matter of whether an attack like this was going to happen, it was when."

Diving with dangerous sharks without a cage appeals to the thrill seeker, Burgess says, adding, "It is taking further and further steps farther and farther toward danger." The tour, provided by Scuba Adventures of Riviera Beach, Fla., promoted its dives as great hammerhead and tiger shark expeditions. Although the company issued a blanket "no comment" when contacted by TIME, its literature made clear the divers would be in the water without any cages while the sharks were being fed — a practice banned in Florida.

"To insure the best results we will be 'chumming' the water with fish and fish parts," the Scuba Adventures website stated. "Consequently, there will be food in the water at the same time as the divers. Please be aware that these are not 'caged' dives, they are open water experiences. We will have crew members in the water at all times to insure diver safety."

Rodney Barreto, chairman of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, maintains there's no way the crew could ensure the safety of the divers. "That's not a controlled environment," Barreto says. "There's no way you know whether a three-foot shark or a 13-foot shark is coming." In 2001, the commission outlawed the practice of fish feeding off the coast of Florida. Because the tour operator could not legally attract sharks with chum in the state where he is based, he went to the Bahamas, Barreto says. "We're not discouraging people to go diving," Barreto adds. "We're telling them to be responsible and obey the law. One of the reasons they went to the Bahamas is they were doing something outside the law."

Jason Margulies, a prominent maritime attorney in Miami, agrees with Barreto. "It seems to me, that this guy was trying to sidestep the Florida ban on shark feeding by proceeding to Bahamian waters," Margulies says. "He knew the dangers. He was going the extra mile to do this." A statement from the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism said in part, "Shark feeding excursions are legal in the Bahamas."

Whether Groh's family could prevail if they took the case to civil court depends a lot upon what law applies — Florida law or federal admiralty law. According to Margulies, admiralty law would apply if the vessel transported passengers between a port in the United States and a foreign country. The federal law would allow a negligence claim; Florida law would bar such a claim. Florida holds that waivers signed by a person participating in high-risk activity such as skydiving or shark watching are valid because they are knowingly engaging in risky activity, Margulies says.

If Florida law prevails, all recourse may not be lost for Groh's family. Lidsky explains that a lot depends upon the wording of the waiver. Sometimes a court will void the contract as a matter of public policy because the contract fails to spell out the risk, she says.

Still, she says, the best bet is to avoid risky behavior in the first place. But if the thrill seeker in you won't allow for that, at a minimum check out the tour operator's safety record and whether the company adheres to proper safety standards. This particularly applies when traveling abroad. Don't take for granted that a tour operator in a foreign country is going to apply the same safety standards as regulated in the United States, she says. Lastly, you may win your lawsuit but collect nothing because the tour operator either has no assets or is uninsured, she adds. Then again, if you want to see a shark close up, you just might want to visit an aquarium.

More Cruise Ship Crewmembers coming forward claiming Slavery

A CRUISE BRUISE EXCLUSIVE

I had a neighbor decades ago, who was scared to death of her husband. She had good reason to be scared, he had beaten her to a bloody pulp more than once, and threatened her with death more times than I can count. I lived next door and could hear the wild accusations that he would make and the resulting beatings. He watched her every move. She couldn't go to the store without him, couldn't talk on the phone or write letters without him screening them.

She was a frail little thing, with two tiny kids, and he could have snapped her like a twig anytime the mood would strike. I stayed out of her affairs, as she requested, until one day I could no longer take the screaming, pleading and begging for help. She was up against the kitchen wall, a butcher knife to her throat, screaming for somebody to call the police because he was going to kill her. So, I did.

When the police arrived they could see the scene through the window, drew their guns and kicked in the door, screaming at him repeatedly to "drop it". Long story short, she refused to press charges, he stayed in the house that night and I was the villain. I have never been able to understand that.

I understand her decision to not have him locked up, it is a pattern of partner abuse mirrored millions of times in this country. I just don't understand how calling the police when begged to do so, made me the bad guy.

I will say, with two small children at her feet, lacking a high school education, no car of her own, and no income of her own, it is easy to see how she would feel trapped after many years of systematic abuse.

I am telling you that story, because it mirrors, in many respects the latest letter I have received from a Carnival Cruise Line crew member. The letter is so sincere, so filled with emotion, pleading for help, that I have once again made an exception for posting a story on this site. I am using my rules for posting sexual abuses cases, in this case, equally as appauling and disgusting. Abuse by any name is still abuse.

There is enough personal identifying information in this letter, that there is good reason for the crew member to be fearful that I might post it all and the crew member would be doomed. I feel so strongly that this crew member is at risk, I will not even post whether the person is female or male.

This is the fifth crew member to come forward in the past few days, all of them saying they are working for Carnival Cruise Lines. Some, seem more complaining than pleading for help. But, all are inspired by the case of Lady Africa and her bravery to make public her dire situation.

From what I can see, they have every reason to complain. But, complaining and pleading for help while out lining human rights violations are two very different things.

Crew Member #5 Contacts Cruise Bruise

Crew member #5 says that the ship has refused to give back their passport too as with Lady Africa as they call her and say they have been trapped on the ship for many months. Contracts are suppose to be for only a few months. What is going on here?

In addition, though crew member #5 gives a full name, the ship name, length of employment on the ship, country of origin, and a complete history of their family, they are terrified to give an email address.

The letter reads, ". . . some people tell me even my guest tell me get lawyers here to take action. . ."

Crew member #5 says in addition to holding the passport and refusing to let the person off the ship, they also have the email addresses crew members use, and monitor their activity. So, this person has asked to have a response posted here.

The final question posed in the email asks, "Is there some way to get justice if I have no money for lawyer in this country [America], also no B2 visa?

To that I answer, "Yes". The conditions, wages, hours worked and intimidation the crew members are saying they suffer under, are not only illegal in this country, they have resulted in employers getting jail time.

It is a crime in the U.S. to work people in double shifts without breaks, seven days a week, to not pay them overtime, to force them to work in job positions they did not agree to, to hold them hostage in the employer's place of business, and forbid them to leave. Without their passports these crew members might as well be shackled to their employer's sweat shop work tables.

Now, let me come back again to another story recently posted. The towns in this country that beg for cruise industry ports-of-call, and refuse to join together to force the industry to fly the American flag and employ people under American labor law standards are assisting in the slave labor trade of some cruise lines. Shame, shame, shame on them.

It is high time the citizens living in these American ports, find a backbone, stand up for human rights and demand their elected officials refuse deals with any ship not flagged in the U.S. This industry can not afford to leave our seas, and sail away from the millions of passengers who live in the U.S. and would be lost if they left our ports.

We can bomb foreign countries to end abuse of those who can not defend themselves, while spending billions of American tax payer dollars to do so. But, we can't write legislation to force passengers ships in our ports to fly the American flag and offer basic labor protections? I'm absolutely disgusted.

I am appealing to all cruise ship passengers, boarding from American ports to refuse to sail on these ships, write your legislators and insist on laws to better protect crew members, and to find it in your heart to take action for crew member #5 and the others, so they might enjoy the same human standards in the work place that you and I enjoy.

Say "no" to cheap cruises and say "yes" to a better standard of living for those who work as slave labor on those cheap cruises. Embark on your own personal crusade for these victims, and create such a fuss, these victims voices will not remain muffled in the belly of ships.

At minimum, I give permission to every webmaster, around the world, to post this case, word for word, so we can let EVERYONE know these people need our help. Enough is enough. It is time to speak out.

Two crew members ( 1 2 ) have gone missing at sea this month alone. One from the same ship "Lady Africa" says she was enslaved on. We can only imagine why. Was it desperation after an inability to continue to endure these substandard employment practices? We will never know.

Crew member #5, you know this story is about you, though I do not call you by your name or nickname.

I urge you to contact me with your email address, so I can begin to help you. I promise you that your email address will be kept in complete confidence by the legal professional I contact on your behalf. You asked me to give you hope, and I am reaching out to you, offering it now. I am giving you one chance, in this single, one time, posting to change work conditions for yourself and all the crew members also suffering.

If you can not give your email for fear of retribution, at least contact me again and give me permission to send a copy of your complete letter to a specialized attorney who will work for you without charge unless the attorney can get your back wages for you and help you out of your dire situation.

I assure you that you will not pay the attorney if their team can not help you, and IF they can get you paid back wages and compensation, they will deduct their fees from the money you collect. Don't worry, you can get help without any money up front.

UPDATE: February 27, 2008 : 0100 hours

Cruise Bruise has received contact from a maritime attorney. The attorney says they can investigate Crew Member #5 claims, and other crew member claims by depositioning all the crew members within the same department, without revealing who made the original complaint. You will be protected.

ANA Receives $447,095 Donation

Settlement from Francisco v. NGC Will Support Education

The American Numismatic Association has received a $447,095
donation to support educational programs and produce a much-needed
consumer awareness booklet with helpful information on coin
collecting.

The donation is from the settlement of a class action lawsuit,
Francisco v. Numismatic Guaranty Corporation, concerning First
Strikes designation. While admitting no wrongdoing or liability,
NGC settled the case and discontinued the use of First Strikes,
believing that controversy from the lawsuit would not be in the
best interests of the hobby.

The parties, with the court's approval, agreed that the lion's
share of the proceeds go to the ANA to further support its mission
of collector education.

"This donation allows the ANA to implement new strategies as well
as enhance its delivery of numismatic education to a vastly larger
audience," said ANA President Barry Stuppler. "We are obviously
greatly appreciative of NGC's commitment to best practices in our
hobby, and to its efforts to support education, which is a
fundamental value of our Association."

"The ANA is the hobby's premiere organization, and no one is better
at developing and delivering educational programs," said NGC Chief
Executive Officer Steve Eichenbaum. "Coin collecting is a very
complex hobby and everyone benefits when collectors are
knowledgeable and well educated."

Stuppler said the ANA would soon begin work on an educational
consumer awareness booklet that will include consumer tips as well
as basic information on grading, authentication and conservation.
The booklet also will discuss the minting process and what
constitutes a "first-strike" coin, plus feature a rich frequently-
asked-questions section as well as a comprehensive listing of
helpful resources for collectors.

The booklet will be distributed for free to all ANA convention
attendees, ANA dealers and their customers, attendees of all ANA
club coins shows and events and to all new Association members. Its
contents will be featured and updated regularly on www.money.org.

"We have wanted to produce a consumer booklet like this for years,
but finances were always a concern," Stuppler said. "Everyone in
the hobby as well as those with only a casual interest in coin
collecting will benefit greatly by having easy access to this
information."

Stuppler said the ANA also will include information on "First
Strikes" as part of its curriculum for Summer Seminar grading
classes.

The lawsuit, filed by Thomas Francisco on Nov. 7, 2006 in U.S.
District Court Southern District of Florida, alleged that he and
other similarly situated purchasers of 'First Strikes' coins
nationwide were under the impression that U.S. bullion coins NGC
designated as 'First Strikes' were among the first coins struck by
the U.S. Mint and were, therefore, worth more than the same type
and grade U.S. bullion coins that were not designated as 'First
Strikes.' The plaintiff, who was represented by Miami lawyer and
coin collector Charles Lipcon as well as co-counsel Tucker Ronzetti
and David Pollack, sought injunction relief, restitution, damages
and attorneys' fees.

NGC denied liability and asserted that a clear definition of 'First
Strikes' was contained on its website, that there were a lack of
complaints regarding any confusion over NGC's definition of 'First
Strikes,' and that NGC competitors had previously used the term to
signify coins that were released by the U.S. Mint within 30 days of
issuance.

The parties agreed to mediate the case, which was heard on June 21,
2007, and presented a settlement to the court on July 16. As a
result of that settlement, NGC agreed "to cease designating coins
as 'First Strikes' unless they were certified to be one of the
first coins struck as part of a ceremonial striking by the U.S.
Mint on the first day of minting and to establish a $650,000
settlement fund to be distributed, net of attorneys' fees and
expenses plus the class representation award, to the American
Numismatic Association, for the purpose of educating the public
about coins and terminology."

A check for $447,095.26 was received by the ANA on Feb. 13.

"These funds will enable the ANA to provide invaluable consumer
awareness information to tens of thousands of Americans interested
in collecting coins," Stuppler said. "Our Congressional Charter
states that the ANA shall advance the knowledge of numismatics and
charges the Association to acquire and disseminate trustworthy
information. We take this responsibility very seriously."

The American Numismatic Association is a nonprofit organization
dedicated to educating and encouraging people to study and collect
money and related items. The ANA helps its 32,000 members and the
public discover and explore the world of money through its vast
array of programs including its education and outreach programs,
museum, library, publications, conventions and seminars. For more
information, call 719-632-2646 or visit www.money.org.

Attorneys await ship staffer's release

BY DONNA BALANCIA
FLORIDA TODAY

Attorneys for Reshma Harilal, a crew member who has filed a lawsuit against Carnival Corp., alleging she is being held against her will on the ship, are hoping she will be removed from the Carnival Glory today, when the cruise ship docks in the Bahamas.

Her attorney, Tonya Meister, an associate with Miami-based Lipcon Margulies & Alsina, said Harilal is working aboard the Port Canaveral-based Glory, which left last Saturday for a Caribbean cruise and is due to return this Saturday to its home port. It was expected to make a port-of-call stop today in the Bahamas.

Harilal this week filed a lawsuit against Carnival in federal court, accusing the Miami-based cruise line company of "forced labor, slavery and/or human trafficking" of her and other crew members aboard Carnival ships. She contends she was hired to work as a stateroom stewardess, but was told she had to take a lower-paying position after she boarded the ship last Saturday.

In court papers filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami, attorneys for Harilal, a 33-year-old citizen of South Africa, ask that she be removed from the Glory and be paid wages that she agreed to work under.

In a statement, Carnival said: "The allegations contained within the suit are patently false, and the company looks forward to vigorously defending itself."

In the meantime, Carnival issued another statement Thursday that updated its earlier position that Harilal is working as a stateroom stewardess on the Glory. The current statement says, in part: "In early February 2008, she was assigned to the Carnival Glory. A stateroom stewardess position was not immediately open on the ship. However, she was advised that, within a maximum of two weeks, she would be placed in a stewardess position. In the interim, she was given a temporary, alternate assignment."

Contact Balancia at 242-3647 or dbalancia@floridatoday.com.

Worker accuses Carnival of forced labor, slavery in lawsuit

A female crew member working on a Port Canaveral-based cruise ship filed a lawsuit today in federal court against Carnival Cruise Lines, accusing the Miami-based cruise line of forced labor, slavery and human trafficking.

In court papers filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District in Florida, attorneys for Reshma Harilal, a 33-year-old resident of South Africa, ask that she is removed from the Carnival Glory cruise ship, where she is currently working. The suit also asks that her passport is returned to her, and that she be paid wages that she agreed to work under.

“Based on what our client has told us, there are other crew members who are also working in lower positions and at a lower pay than they agreed when they boarded the vessel,” said Tonya Meister, an associate at the Miami-based law firm Lipcon Margulies & Alsina. “This case stands for more than money. Human beings should not be treated this way. They should not be forced to work under conditions they did not agree upon, and that’s what this case is about.”

Carnival officials could not immediately be reached for comment today.

With Harilal aboard, the Carnival Glory left Port Canaveral on Saturday.

Court documents claim that Harilal traveled from South Africa to take a position as a cabin steward on the Glory, after signing a contract indicating that would be her position. While already aboard the ship, Harilal was told to work as an assistant cabin steward instead, the suit claims. The cabin steward job pays $1,500 every two weeks, and the assistant job pays $250 to $300 every two weeks, the suit claims.

The Glory was in Belize on Tuesday, was expected to dock in Bahamas on Friday, and was scheduled to return to Port Canaveral on Saturday.

Attorneys have faxed the complaint to the ship, and are hopeful that Harilal will be removed from the ship Thursday or Friday, when the ship is in the Bahamas, and then will be brought back to Miami.

Harilal holds a tourist visa, and would stay with her daughter, who lives in Florida, attorney Meister said.

Read a copy of the lawsuit (PDF).

BY DONNA BALANCIA
FLORIDA TODAY

Crew member accuses Carnival cruises of slavery

Florida Today

A crew member has accused Miami-based Carnival Cruise Lines of forced labor, slavery and human trafficking for allegedly violating her contract by putting her in a lower-paying job, Florida Today reports.

Attorneys for 33-year-old Reshma Harilal, a resident of South Africa with a U.S. tourist visa, filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District in Florida.

They want her taken off the Carnival Glory and returned to Miami. The suit also wants her passport returned, and seeks the wages agreed to under the contract she signed.

Read the entire lawsuit (pdf).

"Based on what our client has told us, there are other crew members who are also working in lower positions and at a lower pay than they agreed when they boarded the vessel," Tonya Meister of the Miami law firm Lipcon Margulies & Alsina told Florida Today. (Like USA TODAY it is owned by Gannett.)

No response yet from Carnival.

The suit alleges that Harilal traveled from South Africa and signed a contract to work as a cabin steward. Once aboard, however, she was told to work as an assistant cabin steward instead, the suit claims. Cabin stewards are paid $1,500 every two weeks, while the assistant earns $250 to $300 biweekly.

The complaint has been faxed to the Glory, which is in Belize today. It's expected to arrive in the Bahamas by Friday, and Harilal's attorneys hope she'll then be returned to Miami. The ship is due back at Port Canaveral on Saturday.

Update at 7:25 a.m. ET: Carnival Cruise Lines is denying the allegations. Here's an excerpt from the statement they released last night:

Reshma Harilal has worked for Carnival since 2000. She joined the company in the position of stateroom stewardess and is presently employed as a stateroom stewardess. Over the past seven years, she has returned for multiple contracts with the cruise line. The allegations contained within the suit are not only completely false, but baffling, and the company looks forward to vigorously defending itself.

Crew Member Alleges She's Being Held Aboard As A Slave Carnival Glory

Florida Today

In a case that left us all breathless, a courageous young woman stood up against Carnival Cruise Line today, when she contacted an attorney in Miami, Florida while allegedly being held against her will aboard Carnival Glory, forced into labor, used as slave labor, and alleges Carnival Cruise Lines is trafficking in slave labor, with other crew members also being held against their will.

Reshma Harilal, age 33, says she is being held against her will aboard the cruise ship still at sea, her passport was taken away from her, and that the cruise line lured her from her native home in South Africa with the promise of a cabin stewardess job earning $3000 a month, but instead she got the old bait and switch. She says that she has a signed contract for the better job description and pay, and wants the money that's coming to her per her contract.

Once she arrived in Florida and boarded the ship, with little money to care for herself, she says the cruise line told her she could not work in the promised job description and instead placed her in a position as an assistant to a cabin steward making only $500-600 a month.

When she refused to work in the lower paying position, and requested to be sent home, she says her request was refused, she was held aboard against her will, and has asked a Florida court to force the cruise line to release her from the cruise ship Carnival Glory where she alleges she is being forced to work as slave labor.

Carnival Glory was in Port Canaveral on Saturday February 9th, and that is when Harilal requested her passport so she could leave the ship and go back home. Instead, she says officers refused to give her back her passport, holding her aboard and then left port with her aboard.

The passport Reshma holds is not the usual C1/D1 work visa other employees have, she is on a tourist visa. Holding her against her will is wrong on numerous levels. She has a daughter in Florida, and wanted to get off the ship while it was in port there to be with her daughter.

In addition, her petition alleges when she became ill suffering from a rash, they refused her medical care and told her if she insisted on getting medical care, she would be terminated.

Other crew members on cruise ships have told the public, that if the cruise lines decide you are not medically fit for work, it means being dumped in the nearest port, without money or any means to get home. Since Glory is cruising the Bahamas at this point in time, it would be a long way home for Reshma.

Then, Reshma alleges when she became desperate to get medical care and requested to be removed from the ship, officers prevented her from exiting the ship. She alleges in her complaint the the cruise line has enslaved crew members including herself and that the line is trafficking in human slavery.

Ms. Harilal alleges she is not the only slave aboard Glory, that other crew members are suffering the same horrible conditions, being held against their will and being paid wages way below what they were promised in signed contracts.

Reshma's complaint outlines the damages she seeks, and that includes the seizure of the vessel used to commit the crime of forced labor, slavery and human trafficking, a penalty that is allowed by U.S. Law.

Carnival denies the allegations.

Cruise Bruise is asking other crew members who have worked for, are working for Carnival Cruise Lines, to come forward if you were held on the ship against you will, the ship's officers refused to get back your passport, you signed contracts for one pay description and grade but were paid for lower pay grades, were refused medical treatment or were forced off ships in foreign ports because you were deemed medically unfit to work. Tell us your story.

Another incident also took place on Saturday February 9, 2008. The bomb squad was called to Terminal 10 at Port Canaveral where Carnival Glory was docked. A suspicious package shut down operatiions at the port until the package was identified and the owner was located. Passenger were beginning to board Carnival Glory for this same cruise, when the incident took place.

Less than two weeks ago, on February 1, 2008, another crew member mysteriously disappeared off of Carnival Glory in the middle of the night. That crew member was never found. The case is here

A copy of the official court petition is - here

Unsafe On The High Seas On Sale At Amazon.com Now

by CruiseBruise.com

Unsafe On The High Seas is available now at Amazon.com. I had the opportunity to read the book recently, and found it to be the most beneficial information for the cruising public, outside of Cruise Bruise.

Maritime attorney and author Charles Lipcon, outlines a checklist of safe at sea passenger practices, and goes beyond to bring public attention to cases not readily available anywhere else, including on Cruise Bruise.

He gives good, sound legal advice, and explains the rights passengers have as well as the rights the industry has, when it comes to U.S. law.

Lipcon goes behind the cruise industry scene as well, to outline sweetheart deals the industry has made with U.S. government that many citizens might not be aware of which include secret meetings to protect their tax-free status in the U.S. while the government awarded one cruise line a government contract that rented cabins at twice the posted rate on travel sites, without putting the contract up for bids.

He touches on the hot topic of passenger travel documents and the changing date of passport deadlines that have come, gone, and been changed at the urging of the cruise industry. You will learn just how influential the industry is, and why passengers rights are not an important issue with legislators.

Other issues covered include the industry ticket language that protects the cruise lines from their own pricing errors, even after you have booked and paid for a cruise, you can be subject to additional fees to cover their own pricing errors. In one major case, this additional amount was over $500 per person, according to Lipcon's book. This is an area of the book, you will definitely want to pay close attention to.

The one case that touched me the most was the case Lipcon presents of a cruiser dumped in a foreign land half way around the world from his home, where English was not spoken, because the ship's doctor incorrectly thought he had a contagious disease. He had travel insurance, but in did not cover this particular problem. The details of that case are shocking and because the case is similar to thousands of other cases each year, you really need to be informed about how this all went terribly wrong.

Some important areas of the book cover the provisions of that all-inclusive voyage, that is anything but all-inclusive. What is covered and not covered is outlined on the pages of this book and it is a long list.

But, more importantly, Lipcon outlines for the passenger how the cruise line will charge passengers for things not included in the all-inclusive cruise, such as beverages, even when the passenger never used nor received the item and how the cruise line gets away with it.

One really surprising note in the book is on the topic of disabled passengers. You would think that a disabled passenger who had made special arrangements to accommodate his disability when he booked his ticket, could at least count on those accommodations when he arrived on the ship. Not so says Lipcon, who outlines a sad case of bait of switch.

With all the sexual assaults we are hearing about, many within the passenger cabin, Lipcon gives the one piece of advice that will protect a woman from an intruder in any cabin on any ship. You won't want to miss that important piece of advice found on page 63.

Real cases are sprinkled throughout the book, including a case of a famous athlete who was severely injured including a fractured spine and a stroke from the head injury when the ship's tender took off as he was still exiting the boat. The athlete later died and never saw justice. This case tragically depicts how negligent the cruise line can be, and how seriously that negligence can affect the passenger. That case is on page 89.

While I could on and on about the many great benefits of reading this book, it would take another book to do it. Simply put, the book is a tremendous insider's look at the industry, and is a must read.

The book is on sale now at Amazon.com - click here

Unsafe On The High Seas' launches at The Collection

The Collection celebrates the release of "Unsafe on the High Seas: Your Guide to a Safer Cruise" written by Maritime attorney Charles R. Lipcon. Guests will receive a complimentary autographed copy of "Unsafe on the High Seas" and will have the opportunity to enter a free raffle to win a weekend with the new Maserati Quattroporte. The launch party takes place on Thursday, Jan. 31, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

This eye-opening book will help the public discover the reality the cruise industry does not want them to know about: sexual assaults, shipboard disappearances, a pattern of cover-ups, noroviruses, unaccredited doctors, inadequate security and the binding ticket contract. The ultimate guide to making any cruise voyage safer, "Unsafe on the High Seas" will teach passengers how to protect themselves and their loved ones from becoming victims. Space is limited

Cruise doctors not responsible for your health

By Jacki Donaldson
General Health

If you believe relaxation contributes to good health and you believe cruises lead to relaxation, then sailing the oceans blue might be just what you need. But if you believe there will be dependable medical care on board should your health take a detour, then you'd possibly be wrong and therefore, a cruise may not be just what you need.

Nearly 10 million Americans will set sail this year. What these 10 million may not know is that cruise lines claim no responsibility for doctors' actions. Cruise lines hire doctors, and they assign them as part of the crew -- but the buck stops there. The doctor merely has to claim to be competent. If he or she is not, cruise lines disavow any responsibility whatsoever.

This fact can be found in the fine print on tickets, Web sites, and brochures. But most of us don't read every detail and for some, discovering this hidden wording occurs too late. If cruise lines are not responsible, then the doctors must be, right? In theory, perhaps. But many doctors are foreigners who and are tough to track down in legal scenarios.

In the book Unsafe on the High Seas, Miami attorney Charles Lipcon offers advice for protecting yourself : Get travel insurance if yours doesn't have an evacuation provision, he says. And bring copies of your medical records, and tell the cruise line about pre-existing conditions. And most important: If you have a serious medical problem, maybe a cruise is not right for you.