The odds of injuries, for both passengers and crewmembers, go up if a cruise ship gets caught in a storm. Rough seas could cause the ship to tip from side to side. Wind, rain and lightning could make it dangerous to be on the deck. Slip-and-fall accidents are common, resulting in a litany of injuries, like broken bones and even traumatic brain injuries.
But how much of a threat is this? If you’re booking a cruise, do you need to be worried?
Ships are designed for rough water
First and foremost, ships are designed to take on this type of weather. Cruise ships are incredibly large, so a drastic amount of sea movement is needed to cause the ship to tip from side to side. This is nothing like being on a smaller watercraft, like a sailboat.
Routes are carefully monitored
For the most part, though, cruise ships have the defense of cutting-edge weather prediction technology. They carefully monitor where the ship will be traveling, paying attention to weather conditions in those areas and using up-to-date predictions to chart a safe course. In other words, rather than canceling a cruise because a storm has set in, the ship itself would just be routed around the storm.
That said, it’s not unheard of for a cruise ship to be caught in an unexpected storm. Perhaps the weather information provided to the captain was inaccurate or maybe communication equipment malfunctioned and so up-to-date information was not available. Whatever the reason, those who have been injured onboard need to know if they have a right to seek financial compensation for their injuries.