Celebrity dumps disabled man on island.

[Bundles917]

Several statements in the article raised my cynical alarm:

 

“I asked them to sit down so we could talk at eye level but they wouldn’t and I had to look up at them,” Keskeny said.

 

"Keskeny’s only remedy is to have his lawyer, Bernstein, who is blind, travel to Miami and arbitrate with the cruise line. In addition, Bernstein is unable under the ticket contract to recover his cost and time of traveling and related case costs to represent Kreskeny in Miami.

 

“I was lucky that I got home safely to the arms of my wife, Nancy.”

 

Apart from others-should-be-eye-level when addressing Mr. Keskney and his past as an advocate for the disabled now hiring (pro bono) a blind lawyer it was the ending statement to the article (about the wife) when the cynical alarm rang loudest.

 

If Mr. Keskeny knew, prior to the booking, he'd need assistance while traveling... why not bring along the arms of said wife? And if Nancy were not available, since Mr. Kreskeny like all single passengers had to pay for double occupancy, why not invite a friend or relative along for an all expenses paid cruise?

 

Something, perhaps forethought or honesty, is missing in this story.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

His wife didn't want to go because it was a nudist cruise. Sounds like a whackjob (no pun intended)

[JohnHall1965]

Sorry but my BS meter is maxed out after reading this !

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I'd be curious to know what services he expected from his Butler. Ugh.

[Casino Player]

Breaking news out of Detroit. Celebrity disembarked a disability rights leader on an island after he requested assistance from the cruise line.

 

http://theoaklandpress.com/articles/2011/04/09/life/doc4da078e9400ea734339385.txt

 

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLOOOOO detroitcruiser: I have read this story in its entirety. There is much information that is not being said. If his wife didn't go with him and he is handicapped then why didn't he have someone to assist him? What was his conduct toward the cruise line employees? Was he very confrontational? What type of assistance was he expecting from the cruise line? Some assistance that passengers expect from cruise lines are not reasonable. I have been on Celebrity Cruise Line ships when mishaps have occurred to passengers. They have been treated very well. There are pieces of information that is not being said that is germain to what occurred. There is more to it than is being said.

[CaroleLee]

Breaking news out of Detroit. Celebrity disembarked a disability rights leader on an island after he requested assistance from the cruise line.

 

http://theoaklandpress.com/articles/2011/04/09/life/doc4da078e9400ea734339385.txt

 

OK- something is very incomplete with this story. Disclaimer-I have worked 30+ yrs with HC/disabled/geriatrics.

1."he booked a larger room with butler"- A butler unpacks, brings drinks, snacks,etc.Does not transfer a pax from WC to toilet, wc to bed etc. Why did he not book a HC cabin-which by design are larger/less cramped than"normal" cabins?

2."traveled around the world by self in 2002" MS is a PROGRESSIVE disease he could have been relatvely OK 9 yrs ago

3.As others have stated it was a double room- why no health care aide? I know of several agencies that provide traveling aides, RNs etc. Yes it costs $ to hire someone but that is the reality of life.

4. Was this the nude cruise? If yes, can understand why no aide, wife etc.,

5.Sounds as though he wanted to make a test case. " I'm a on a cruise (nude or not) and no one helped me with my ADL etc" Sorry-read the contract it is the pax responsibilty to be able to care for themselves or bring assistance. Even when one reads the excursion materials the booklet states activity levels. So what was his excuse? A "world traveler" even on a fully(non-HC) esorted world tour you have to be able to care for yourself. There are travel agencies that specialize in HC travel/arrangements so his world travel appears to be questionable.

6.Put off on an island...Read the contract, everyone is subject to the same rules & regs. Sorry but if a "kindly" X employee had assisted you & you fell/dropped etc how large woulkd your lawsuit be?

Would love to see the follow-up story.

Carole

[zoncom]

I assumed he was in a regular room from line in news clip stating he needed help with a ADA non compliant lip into bathroom. HC rooms have no barriers of any kind. Sounds like a test case or as they call them in Miami-a slip and fall suit.

[PartyAllDaTyme]

A few observations--

 

He was on his own once he was off the ship. It was his choice to book return airfare through Haiti. If he was concerned about going to Haiti, he should have made other arrangements. Unless the only way off the debarkation island was via Haiti, Celebrity has no control over how the passenger chose to get home.

 

I think the assumption is when he boarded that he would be self-sufficient enough not to require assistance. When it proved to be otherwise, it was at that point he was found to be in violation of the cruise contract and put off the ship. I wonder, though, if the passenger had been made fully aware of the difficulty of moving around even an accessible cabin before he boarded. Should he have been allowed to board in the first place?

 

The fact that it happened to be a nude cruise has no bearing on the situation. Nude cruises exist, have for some time, the crew may not particularly like it but have to tolerate it. See the threads on nude cruises for discussion of this. The issue with the butler being asked to assist the passenger should stand on the liability issue alone-- as others have said, it would take two people to properly handle the passenger, and it's clearly beyond the scope of the butler's duties to assist with this.

 

To me, the article makes it sound like a butler was specially arranged for the purpose of assisting this passenger, and so that the agreed-upon duties might have been individually negotiated. There's no mention that everyone in a suite on a Celebrity ship gets a butler, and that their duties would not include assisting a disabled passenger.

[GITC]

His wife didn't want to go because it was a nudist cruise. Sounds like a whackjob (no pun intended)

 

We get it. A nude cruise isn't for you. It isn't for me either but clearly it is for enough others to charter a ship. To each their own.

 

Please keep the name calling and any further expressions of your disgust to yourself.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I'm sorry but this story cracks me up. At first I felt sorry for the guy but as I read on I realized that he was a weirdo and got booted off probably for various reasons.

 

Also, I love how he claims this was his way of celebrating his retirement. I don't believe that given the statement that he did a world cruise in 2002. Not to many executives have 3 months vacation time. So he is just trying to get his money back. I say give it to him and with the condition that he never cruises Celebrity again.

 

Yes to each their own but now that I am aware of this it does make me not want to be on a ship immediately following this type of cruise. I am sorry for the name-calling.

[Char]

This statement bothers me:

 

He paid $4,000 for his ticket so he’d have a larger stateroom for his wheelchair and also paid extra to have a butler assigned to him to help him since he was traveling alone.

 

Firstly, it doesn't say the cabin was an accessible one---only a larger one to accommodate his wheelchair.

 

Secondly, butlers are not "assigned" to individuals, at extra cost, to provide personal services. I wonder who he paid this extra money to for a personal butler...surely not the cruiseline direct. I suspect it was the booking company that arranged for the charter. That would have been misrepresentation on their part.

 

Something got lost in the telling of this story. I sure would like to know the rest of the story!

[Char]

double post

[TravelerThom]

Not looking for a nude cruise, but I looked at the itinerary [st. Barths, Guadeloupe, Martinique, St. Martin, Coco Cay] and price [starting at $799 for 10 nights] and thought that was better than most itineraries and prices.

 

Thom

[kennetro]

I smell a rat.

[GITC]

I'm sorry but this story cracks me up. At first I felt sorry for the guy but as I read on I realized that he was a weirdo and got booted off probably for various reasons.

 

I am sorry for the name-calling.

Your apology seems a little disingenuous.

 

The story is definitely one-sided and full of big enough holes to drive a ship through. How anybody can draw any conclusions as a result is a little perplexing.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Sorry I wasn't calling anyone on these boards names. I thought that's what you meant. I don't know all the facts. Just sounds fishy so far.

[bellybutton530]

That is quite an accusation. There is nothing in the story that shows he did not get a HC room.

But there is nothing in the story that says he did have an accessible cabin, aside from the fact that there was a bump up between the cabin and the bathroom.

 

That is a sure sign that the cabin wasn't accessible.

 

Why in the world would a wheelchair-bound man, traveling alone, book a non-accessible cabin.

 

Makes no sense, unless he was looking for a lawsuit....

[DivasDare]

I am longtime Celebrity cruiser and Mother of disabled adult. This situation does not sound plausible. If he is a world traveler and activist he should know about handicap access cabins which are on all ships. He should also know a disabled person needs to travel with a helper/companion on ships to foreign ports. I have a feeling he was doing a test case; how does X treat the disabled? Why was he not in handicapped stateroom? Was Celebrity made aware of his condition when he booked? Bet not. HC cabins are not usually full.

 

My same thoughts. Something wasn't right with his decision to travel alone and to expect the cruise line to work as his aid.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

This guy sued Northwest airline a few years ago and had the same blind attorney. The case was dismissed.

[montgomeryfamily]

I am posting only to address the issue of whether this is a wheelchair accessible cabin. I don't know whether the man in the story sailed in a wheelchair accessible cabin, but if it was on the Century, then you cannot assume that because there was a lip/bump up, it was not an accessible cabin.

 

We have sailed in an accessible sky suite on the Century and there is a lip/bump up between the main part of the cabin. There is not a step like in the regular cabins, but between the bathroom and the main part of the cabin there is a ramp and a lip or bump up at the top where the door closes. We were able to get into the bathroom, but sometimes it was difficult, especially if you were at an angle at all. Coming out of the bathroom wasn't usually difficult.

 

We are Elite on Celebrity and I have to say that our experience on the Century was the worst Celebrity cruise we have ever had and we would never sail on the Century again. Although we were in a Sky Suite which has a balcony, there was no ramp from the Suite to the Balcony and since there was a step, it was impossible to go out on th e balcony when rolling in a wheelchair. We were on a five day cruise and I started with the cabin attendant and worked my way up through the butler, Housekeeper, Guest Relations Desk, and Asst. Guest Relations Mgr attempting to get a ramp. The Guest Relations Mgr refused to talk with me without an appointment and I was told that I could not have an appointment. This is when the Asst. Guest Relations Mgr talked to me, but still claimed she could not do anything.

 

Believe it or not, the excuse given was that a wheelchair ramp on the balcony was a fire hazard. Odd that it is not a fire hazard on any of the other five Celebrity ships we have been on. (we've been on more cruises, but on a total of five different ships) And given that this is a wheelchair accessible cabin, one would think that a ramp of the appropriate material would have already been in place. It wasn't until I attended a Navigation briefing and actually questioned this "safety" issue with the First Officer and Captain who were in attendance that on Day 4 we finally received a ramp.

 

There were not the only issues on the cruise. We could have been forgiving of the deficiencies on the ship, but the response or lack thereof to provide a remedy and the general uncaring attitude of the staff is why we would not cruise on the Century again and would never recommend this ship to anyone who is disabled.

 

All of this being said, I am in no way taking a position on the situation involving the man in this story. I only want to clarify the situation in regard to wheelchair accessible sky suites on the Century.

 

Oh, and in response to Zoncom, our experience is that HC cabins on Celebrity are opened to the general inventory sometime between final payment and thirty days to sailing and it is often very difficult to get those cabins if you wait until then. We have been unable to take advantage of several Tuesday specials and other promos because, although there were a lot of regular cabins left, the HC cabins are taken. So I think it is unusual when a HC cabin is left empty on sailing. Others on the disabled board will back this up as well. So those of us needing wheelchair accessible cabins usually have to book early.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Is interesting to hear this and I am sorry about your cruise.

[happy cruzer]

The cruiser and his lawyer already know they do not have a case otherwise they would persue it and not even discuss it at all publicly, if it's a good case they can find a representive in Miami if need be. I would bet alot of money that there is video showing the cruiser being abusive or overly demanding in a very obvious manner (or some other action that I can't even dream up) otherwise the cruise line would never have disembarced him. The cruise line will have their bases covered in this case. They are being the squeaky wheel to see if something can be recovered. JMHO.

[dgraham]

To me this sounds like someone unfamiliar with cruising who made huge and naive assumptions and did no research. And speaking as one in a wheelchair, one soon learns (or should learn) that the more research the better in planning any vacation, etc.

[A1A]

Your apology seems a little disingenuous.

 

The story is definitely one-sided and full of big enough holes to drive a ship through. How anybody can draw any conclusions as a result is a little perplexing.

 

Is interesting to hear this and I am sorry about your cruise.

 

You two crack me up!

 

STOP!

 

Ken

[Bridge Maven]

Would anyone send a ten year old child on a cruise by himself and expect the cruise line to supervise him so he doesn't harm himself?

 

Would anyone send a parent with Alzheimer's Disease on a cruise by herself and expect the cruise line to supervise her so she doesn't harm herself?

 

Of course not!!!

 

So why would anyone send a husband on a cruise, who is too disabled to be self sufficient, by himself? It is one thing to expect a cruise line to have physical accommodations for disabled passengers but totally off the wall to expect them to use their crew to play private nurse.