Cruise Ship Crew Member: Stuck 21 Hours Per Day In A 200 Square Foot Room
The thousands of cruise ship crew members who are still stuck aboard their ships are likely having a rough go of it. They are mostly confined to their rooms, many unable to leave even to eat. Aboard some ships the workers’ fellow crew members bring meals to their colleagues’ staterooms while they themselves are suited in protective gear. And while some workers do have the luxury of leaving their rooms, these periods are usually limited to just a few hours per day.
A Holland America cruise member, Melinda Mann of Georgia, has spoken to FoxNews about her ordeal. She reports that she has been stuck aboard the MS Oosterdam ship since March 14, when the ship’s passengers disembarked. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) will not allow the crew members to disembark, fearing further coronavirus contagion.
Mann told Fox 11 “I had actually asked to be released early from my contract because I kind of saw where COVID was heading and I said, ‘Hey can I go home early,’ and they said, ‘Yeah, we’ll try to get you off on the 21st of March.’ Well here we are and it’s past the 21st of April and I’m still here,” the report says.
Mann says that ship authorities allow her out of her small room for meals and to take a walk every day. Other than that, she is confined for 21 hours per day.
Mann claims that she is not sick and has offered to take a coronavirus test and quarantine herself for two weeks shoreside, but has had no success getting a date that authorities will allow her to leave the ship. It appears that, unless the President, Congress, or the courts get involved, she may be aboard the ship “for the long haul.”
Attorney John H. (Jack) Hickey and his team handle a wide range of cases, including but not limited to cruise ship accidents, admiralty and maritime accident cases, medical malpractice, wrongful death, premises liability, railroad accidents and car accidents. We represent victims from all over the nation, the world and the state of Florida.