chengkp75

Why else would he knowingly violate company policy, and then continue to press the issue in the face of the parents wishes? I'll tell you what, every single Captain I've worked for, and every Hotel Director would fire that man in an instant if that was reported. You actually condone this?

There is an overlap in jurisdiction between "port state" (the country where the port or waters the incident happened in) and "flag state" (the country where the ship is registered). And this gray area is what keeps Admiralty lawyers in business. In a port (I don't remember if this happened in port or at sea), the flag state has jurisdiction on the ship, unless the "safety or well being" of the port state are affected, in which case the port state has jurisdiction. However, the US has also claimed "extra-territorial" jurisdiction to claim jurisdiction over certain crimes against US citizens that happen on the open ocean (in no other country's waters), regardless of the flag of the ship.

Don't know where the "engineers and technical staff are obviously contractors", or how they are so obviously contractors. The deck (Captain, bridge officers, deck crew, Medical, Security, and Environmental officers) and engine (all engineers and maintenance personnel onboard, whether in the engine room or in the hotel) are the technical departments of a cruise ship, and both departments will be either company employees or employees of a Ship Management company.

Yes, but it is the cruise line's responsibility to not allow non-potty trained kids in the pools. Not being proactive in stopping this before it happens is a non-conformity in itself. Just as it is the cruise line's responsibility to enforce the no touching food in the buffet line, and other sanitation requirements.

Shutting down a recreational water feature due to a fecal or vomit incident must be recorded by the ship's staff, and all remediation methods taken recorded. If this record does not match with reports the CDC has received from the public, then there will be a violation noted. And, if an inspector sees that the pools have been shut down for fecal/vomit incidents several days in a row, this will trigger them to ask about the policies regarding potty training, and whether they are being enforced. The cruise lines rely on the ignorance of the cruising public. In many cases, just mentioning that you know about the VSP, and what it covers, is enough to get shipboard staff to respond.

I realize that, I was responding to someone who suggested that she sue these people as well.

USPH is the US Public Health Service that administers the VSP (Vessel Sanitation Program) for the CDC. All cruise ships that call at US ports are subject to health inspections by USPH every time they enter the US from a foreign port, and these inspections include health interviews with selected groups of passengers and crew, before allowing anyone to disembark the ship. Imagine the chaos and delay if this were carried out on every cruise ship every week. So, in order to bypass this, cruise lines and the CDC devised the VSP which is a comprehensive plan covering all aspects of public health on ships, from pools to food safety, to laundry, kid's centers, and lighting and ventilation, and not only covers the operation of the ships, but how they are built in the first place. The VSP is the basis for those USPH inspections that you see on cruise ships (those guys and gals in khaki uniforms), and they try to inspect every cruise ship calling in the US twice a year, unannounced. These inspections give the "grades" that one can look for on the CDC website, and a failing score (under 75 out of 100), can cost the ship its ability to embark passengers in the US. So, involving the USPH/CDC is a big deal for the cruise lines.

What is really required is to report to onboard staff (preferably the Hotel Director) that you intend to report this to the USPH/CDC as a violation of the VSP, and then do so. That will get attention in a hurry. A fecal incident caused by inattention by staff will be a high point deduction on an inspection score, and almost guarantee a failing score.

Given Bermuda's unique fresh water situation, I'm sure that any water you want to bring from the ship, and not use theirs is welcome.

Unless things have changed markedly since I worked there (and it's been a while), the things that were outsourced were things where consistency wa key, like burger and hot dog rolls, and some of the dessert "deatails" (candy trim, etc) This is a USPH/CDC requirement and followed by all cruise lines that call at US ports, as well as part of the EU's ShipSan program for the EU. For POA, since it is a US flag ship, it follows the FDA program for cruise ships, not USPH, but they are almost identical.

"Something like this" is a violation of company policy, and a high liability issue. He is well aware of company policy, and is only trying to get bigger tips.

How are her lawyers going to get the principals of the crewing agency from the Philippines to a court in the US? How likely is a Filipino crew member to have personal liability insurance, and while he may be physically in the US for a criminal trial and incarceration, forcing an insurance company (if there is one) in the Philippines to pay up would be difficult.

My experience with helicopters is 12 years of flying in the back, and commanding flight deck crews on offshore oil rigs, so I'm in no way in your league. I've never seen a "light on the wheels" on anything other than a large oil platform, so I'm just saying that it could be done, but as you say, not likely. The Dolphin weighs 6900 lbs empty, so even though the pad on the Edge would be large enough, I think it would be overloaded.

Viking has contracted with Wilhelmsen Ship Management to provide technical (i.e. ship operations, not the hotel side) and crew management, since the Oceans operations started.

There is almost no maritime power system less efficient than a steam plant. And that is due to simple physics, not any design flaws or things that can be designed out. That's why the world shifted from steamships to motor ships (diesel) after WW2, because fuel was expensive. But, in the US, fuel was always far cheaper than the rest of the world, so we retained steamships into the 1970's.