Disabled man kicked off 'nude cruise' gets refund

[cruisecrazymama]

It wasn't the fall that got him put off the ship. He was told by ship personal to hire a private duty nurse, or he would be put off. He refused, so they put him ashore.

[crusinmama06]

Ryan, if you look at the original thread, or what is left of it since a LOT got deleted, he had fellow passengers helping him transfer. He did a similar cruise in the past, where they assign roommates if you need one, and his roommate had to help him transfer. He should have trained staff with him so someone doesn't hurt him or get hurt themselves when they transfer him to bed or toilet. From reading the multiple articles that had been posted on the Celebrity board, while independent, I don't think this man has the ability to handle all his day to day needs on his own.

 

I would have loved to see you coming down the gangway doing a wheelie though!:eek::D

 

Yes, this. Ryan, I have been looking into the threads and the articles and from his own admission, he had other passengers transferring him from the bed AND to the bath. He wanted the butler to do it as well. You know as well as I, that's not going to happen. ;)

 

His original article didn't mention that this was a swingers cruise. And he said that he was "Happy to be home in the awaiting arms of his wife"

 

Well if he was so proud to be on the swingers cruise then why not mention it in the original article? And why mention his wife who was happily waiting for him at home?

 

I wouldn't worry about ever being put off in your situation. This sounds like this was staged.

 

Happy cruising! :D

[readytogo2]

I just hope they wash the furniture real good after a cruise like that:D But seriously, my dad had MS and he didnt look as bad as that guy does and he/we would never entertain the idea of cruising without a well trained aid.

[Aquahound]

Wouldn't this cruise have been a charter, therefore refund given by that company, not Celebrity? Could this charter have had anything to do with the decision to remove him? Just asking.

[crusinmama06]

Wouldn't this cruise have been a charter, therefore refund given by that company, not Celebrity? Could this charter have had anything to do with the decision to remove him? Just asking.

 

I'm sure it has been discussed with the charter leaders while onboard. It says "Bare Necessities founder Nancy Teimann agreed that Keskeny's needs were extensive: 'He needed help every time he had to get out of bed and go to the bathroom, every time he needed to take a bath.'

 

It goes on to say...

 

'He made his cruise booking directly with the charter company, and Celebrity Cruises was unaware of his additional needs until he was onboard the ship," said the line in a statement. Likewise, Tiemann said Keskeny had not made Bare Necessities aware of his special situation. Tiemann noted that it was her understanding that Keskeny's wife, Nancy, was supposed to be on the cruise, but became ill at the last minute. 'Had I known ahead of time what was going on, I would have told him not to come alone.'

 

Keskeny responded that he thought his disability would not be an issue."

 

Why would he think that the Butler was going to transfer him in and out of bed, the toilet and the bath? That's home nursing care. I just can't get past that part.

[Cruising89143]

This whole thing is bizarre. Someone paid him to just make him go away.

[ryano]

Thanks for the information ladies :) I figured as much. I honestly hadnt read anything about it and have no idea what this man was thinking. I agree that he was paid to just go away.

 

very bizarre for sure

[klingoncruiser]

I remember the thread. I did not read all of it as it got really ugly. Seems the guy really set the cruise line up but they found it easier to just pay him off than fight the pr that it was generating.

[Vegas Vic]

Here is the latest news on this story:

 

A disabled man will have his money refunded after being removed, he claimed unfairly, from a nude cruise in Guadelupe, Mexico.

 

His lawyer said Royal Caribbean agreed to grant a full refund. The company had previously defended its decision to remove the passenger.

 

Royal Caribbean International has agreed to meet with a disabled wheelchair passenger who was left on Guadeloupe, and discuss accessibility of its ships and treatment of seniors and the disabled.

 

Jim Keskeny, 66, formerly of Bloomfield Township, was disembarked from a nude cruise, Bare Necessities, on a Celebrity Cruise ship Feb. 18 after four days at sea.

 

He was told by officials on the ship that he was a safety hazard to himself and staff because he uses a wheelchair.

 

Keskeny, who has traveled the world on behalf of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, was forced to find his way home from Guadeloupe at a cost of some $1,500. His return trip included a stopover in Haiti, which concerned him because he had not had vaccinations for cholera, malaria or meningitis.

 

His attorney, Richard Bernstein of Farmington Hills, said Royal Caribbean has agreed to return the $3,902 fee for the cruise and additional costs of getting home, for a total of $5,636.26.

 

But more importantly, Keskeny, Bernstein — who is blind — and Gary Talbot, an expert on the Americans with Disabilities Act Architectural Guidelines from Foxboro, Mass., will meet with Royal Caribbean officials in Miami to make sure the company’s ships are in compliance with the ADA guidelines, and that the cruise line knows proper etiquette in dealing with people with disabilities.

 

Talbot said he wants to do an ADA audit of the ship Keskeny was on to see if it is accessible, as required.

 

“I’m hoping that the company looks at this and says, ‘Man, we dropped the ball and we need to figure out why it happened and put measures in place so it doesn’t happen again.”

 

Keskeny found it ironic that Royal Caribbean, which prides itself on service and has built a multimillion-dollar business on trying to fulfill every wish of its travelers, treated him in such a “horrific” manner.

 

“I was in a state of shock when three members of the Celebrity Cruise came and told me I was going to be disembarked and had to find my way back home to Michigan,” Keskeny said.

 

Assistant General Counsel Tony Faso of Royal Caribbean is expected to notify Bernstein’s team of when it will meet and discuss its overall accessibility to passengers with disabilities.

 

A telephone call to Faso was not returned.

 

“All we really wanted was to make Jim whole,” Bernstein said, referring to the money Keskeny paid for the cruise and cost of getting home.

 

Royal Caribbean, in two letters to Keskeny and his lawyer, painted Keskeny as an invalid incapable of taking care of daily activities such as bathing, dressing, toileting and getting in and out of bed.

 

Such a stereotypical characterization of Keskeny, who has completed many marathons using a wheelchair — including two in Paris — raised $100,000 for the Multiple Sclerosis Society and spent his life as a successful businessman, was particularly egregious.

 

“I am cautiously optimistic and am looking forward to sitting down with them face to face and seeing and feeling how sincere they really will be,” Keskeny said, regarding the cruiseline’s intentions of making its ships in compliance with the ADA and to treat people with disabilities with “dignity and respect.”

 

Bernstein, who has made breakthroughs in gaining civil rights for people with disabilities in football stadiums, transportation systems, the airline industry and in educational rights, said he too was optimistic about meeting with officials at a date to be determined by the Miami-based company.

 

Under a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, any vessel that docks or leaves a U.S. port must be in compliance with the accessibility guidelines of the ADA — landmark civil rights legislation signed into law by President George Bush on July 26, 1990.

 

If such treatment of a person with a disability as that experienced by Keskeny is allowed to go unchallenged, it can reverse some of the progress made in efforts to gain equal opportunity and rights for the 50 million disabled Americans since the law was passed 21 years ago.

 

It also resurrects victimizing stereotypes that people with disabilities are unable to do the things others can do, nor should they try.

 

“We had to go through all this fighting with Royal Caribbean to have future passengers with disabilities to be treated with respect and treated appropriately,” Bernstein said.

 

“We are trying to make a difference for disabled people and seniors so such an incident never happens again.”

 

Keskeny said he never was interested in receiving money damages for the unbelievably harsh treatment he experienced at the hands of Royal Caribbean.

 

“I want to make sure anyone with a disability can board a Royal Caribbean or Celebrity Cruise ship and have an enjoyable vacation,” he said.

 

Bernstein said he wants the cruise industry to showcase itself as a viable option for seniors and those with disabilities as a vacation or business possibility.

 

“This was just one of those things that were on my ‘bucket list,’” Keskeny said of the trip.

 

“I was so disappointed. I was looking forward to just sitting on the private deck outside of my stateroom and watching the sunset and it was impossible to even get my manual wheelchair over the 6-inch lip of the doorwall to get out there,” said Keskeny.

 

“This never was about getting money from Royal Caribbean. It was about experiencing a dream come true — not being dumped in a foreign country.”