Maritime & Boating Accident Lawyer News
On January 25, 2018, while sailing aboard the Carnival Ecstasy with other family members, Eric Ewing decided to relax in his cabin and have a bite to eat. Eric began to eat a slice of pizza while he sat comfortably on the edge of his bed. Per a Complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida dated April 25, 2018, suddenly and without warning, the upper bunk within his cabin came crashing down on Eric’s head. Per an announcement over the PA system, the Carnival Ecstasy had diverted off course to provide emergency medical care for a passenger having a medical emergency. Eric noticed the vessel was no longer riding as smoothly after the change of course. Eric has now been diagnosed with a closed head traumatic brain injury, which now nine months later is causing him debilitating and life altering pain, and diminished cognitive abilities.
Eric is an honorably discharged U.S.M.C. veteran, father of two and was traveling aboard the Carnival Ecstasy with several direct and extended family members. Eric had sailed with Carnival on 27 occasions before the subject cruise and had earned the distinction of being a Platinum cruiser with Carnival. Eric’s cabin, very similar to the above picture, had been configured by cruise staff to accommodate his wheelchair bound mother, who he and his family made it a point of traveling with as frequent as possible. Unfortunately, and on the eve of the Cruise, Eric’s mother was unable to join her family on the cruise. Ordinarily, these cabins are configured with twin beds on each side and a nightstand between the beds. An upper bunk is stowed above each lower bed and when not in use is folded up into the walls and out of the way. If more than two passengers stay in a cabin, a Cabin Steward generally deploy or lowers any needed upper bunk while the room’s occupants are at dinner. That way any needed upper bunk is ready and available for use after the cabin’s occupants return from dinner. Conversely, the Cabin Steward folds up or raises any upper bunk the following morning while the cabin’s occupants are at breakfast.
Some things are very clear about this most unfortunate event, which has tragically robbed Eric of the life he once enjoyed. Passengers don’t lower or raise upper bunks within their cabins aboard Carnival’s vessels. In fact, passengers can’t. The bunks have a locking mechanism that requires a special locking/unlocking tool or wrench. Only Carnival personnel have the tool. Without the tool, upper bunks cannot be unlocked and lowered at least when they are raised and locked in place when stowed.
Last week, on Wednesday, September 5, 2018 at roughly 6:15PM EST, a 74-year old woman who was a passenger traveling aboard Carnival Horizon — operated by the global cruise line giant, Carnival Cruises — was medevaced due to serious chest pains. Personnel aboard Carnival Horizon were reportedly concerned that the chest pains indicated a possible heart issue, thus necessitating a medevac to a higher-level medical facility capable of treating the passenger.
The honeymoon of Israeli newlyweds, Egael Tishman, 24, and Shif Fanken, 27, came to a tragic end when the couple collided during a zip line excursion. The couple was celebrating their honeymoon aboard Royal Caribbean Cruises’ Allure of the Seas, which set sail from Fort Lauderdale on July 1st. On Thursday, July 5th, while participating in a zip line excursion in Roatan, Honduras, the wife got stuck near the middle of the cable. Her husband came sliding down the zip line behind her, smashing into her.
Earlier this year, Royal Caribbean announced its implementation of a new water safety program fleet wide starting with Oasis of the Seas. The program includes stationing of lifeguards trained by StarGuard Elite at every pool including Solarium, the adult-only area. RCL will also offer a 15-minute water safety presentation during the embarkation-day open house session for its youth program, Adventure Ocean.
The Florida Board Certified Maritime Attorneys of Brais Law Firm have been retained by the family of a child who died from complications caused by a near drowning incident aboard 
The cruise passenger injury lawyers of Brais Law Firm have filed lawsuit on behalf of a Texas woman against Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and a Honduran shore excursion operator for injuries sustained while participating in a zip-line excursion offered, advertised and marketed by the cruise line on its website. 
Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers has selected our managing partner Keith Brais as a 2016 inductee into Super Lawyers. This distinct honor is enjoyed by less than 5 percent of all attorneys. What is particularly impressive is that Keith has achieved this impressive credential for eight consecutive years. The objective of Super Lawyers “is to create a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of outstanding attorneys that can be used as a resource for attorneys and consumers searching for legal counsel.” In selecting attorneys for Super Lawyer, a rigorous multiphase process is utilized. Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third party research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis. 
The cruise passenger injury lawyers of BBRC have been retained to represent a Louisiana woman who fell due to an unreasonably slippery deck aboard the Carnival Elation cruise ship. The slip and fall occurred on the ship’s Lido deck. The accident, unfortunately, resulted in a rotator cuff tear requiring surgery. 
A 29-year-old passenger is in ta Charleston, South Carolina hospital after being airlifted off the Disney Magic cruise ship last Saturday. Reports state that in the early morning hours the cruise ship requested assistance from the Coast Guard when one of its passengers sustained injuries to his leg and hip. A Coast Guard MH-60 Dolphin helicopter crew randevued with the Disney Magic 45 miles off the South Carolina coast and airlifted the injured passenger to a hospital in Charleston where he received further treatment. No information has been releases as to how the passenger sustained his injuries. The man is said to be in stable condition.