Carlos A. Fabano

Published on: March 24, 2026

Nearly 200 People Affected in Norovirus Outbreak. What to Know.

About 141 guests and 52 members of the crew aboard a cruise ship reported being ill during a voyage earlier this month, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

The outbreak was reported to the CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, the agency announced. The symptoms that were reported predominantly included diarrhea and vomiting as the result of norovirus.

As a response to the outbreak, the cruise line said it was increasing disinfecting and cleaning efforts aboard the vessel. Those who reported feeling ill were quarantined to prevent any spread and specimens were collected. VSP officials conducted assessments and outbreak investigations to mitigate further spread.

Published on: March 13, 2026

Falls on Cruise Ships Can be Serious. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

One moment, a passenger is strolling along the lido deck with plans to take advantage of a soft-serve ice cream machine, and the next, they are writhing in pain after a fall that has ruined their whole vacation.

As many Leesfield & Partners’ cruise ship injury clients can attest, that scene is not altogether that uncommon. The firm has remained committed to holding cruise lines accountable for nearly five decades throughout South Florida. In that time, our skilled trial attorneys have seen just about every manner of injury that can occur to cruise ship passengers. From excursion accidents to medical malpractice incidents and slip and falls, our attorneys have worked diligently on every case to secure the best possible outcome for our clients.

The firm’s Founder and Managing Partner, Ira Leesfield, along with Trial Attorney Bernardo Pimentel II, is representing a woman who suffered a life-altering fall while traveling on a ship with her family. What was meant to be a milestone vacation, marking not only our client’s first time on a cruise but also her first time out of the country, was soured by her horrific injury and the ordeal she suffered afterwards.

Published on: February 23, 2026

One Dead, Four Others Injured in Cruise Ship Fire. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

Officials are investigating what caused a fire to break out aboard a cruise ship in Singapore following the death of at least one person and the injury to four others.

The fire broke out on Friday, Feb. 20 in a lounge area on one of the ship’s decks, according to reporting from PEOPLE. The name and age of the person who died, a member of the crew from Indonesia, was not immediately available Friday afternoon. The four who were injured are recovering in the hospital, the media outlet reported.

The fire aboard the ship, which was carrying 271 passengers and about 338 crew members at the time, was reported to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) at around 4 a.m. local time. Passengers were evacuated while members of the crew handled the flames. Singapore Civil Defence Force’s (SCDF) marine firefighters extinguished the blaze.

Published on: November 24, 2025

This Cruise Line Has Closed Waterslides on Multiple Ships. Here’s Why.

By Leesfield & Partners

Royal Caribbean has shut down slides on multiple ships in its fleet in a bid to improve safety months after a passenger was injured in an incident that caught national attention.

The incident happened in August when a slide’s acrylic panel shattered, injuring a passenger. The slide was closed and then repaired. Videos showing the aftermath went viral and caught nationwide attention.

Since then, company’s safety initiative has closed slides on at least three ships, according to reporting from The Miami Herald. No official word has been released on whether more slides will face closure or the duration of the alleged shutdown.

Published on: November 24, 2025

Excursion Boat Sinks, Man Falls Between Cruise Ship and Pier: What to Know About These Recent Cruise Ship Accidents.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least 51 cruise ship passengers were in need of rescue off the coast of the Dominican Republic after the tour boat they were on sunk on Sunday, Nov. 9, according to media.

The incident involved a catamaran with a shore excursion from a two-week cruise ship and allegedly resulted from an “internal failure,” according to Cruise News Today.

The stop in Samana Bay had been added following re-routing due to inclement weather conditions related to Hurricane Melissa. No “major” injuries were reported.

Published on: September 25, 2025

Texas Cruise Ship Passenger Dies on Alaskan Mountain Trail. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

A 32-year-old cruise ship passenger died after falling off an Alaskan trail and sliding down a steep mountain while on a hike with at least one other person, according to media.

The body of Britain Pool, of Texas, was found off the Mount Roberts trail in Juneau around 8:10 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 16, by police.

Pool and at least one other cruise ship passenger were hiking when they fell off the trail and slid down the mountain. Rescuers were able to find the other passenger but could not locate Pool, who had slid further down the mountain.

Published on: September 25, 2025

Cruise Fight Results in Passengers Hospitalized. What Happened?

By Leesfield & Partners

At least two people were taken to the hospital for injuries following a fight that broke out aboard a Royal Caribbean ship this week, according to national media outlets.

The incident happened Monday around 6:48 p.m. when Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies and local firefighters were called our to PortMiami for reports of a “dispute”, according to national media. Investigators later learned that an alleged verbal argument became physical aboard the ship, causing the captain to return to port.

The ship returned to port around 8:30 p.m.

Published on: September 18, 2025

Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth to Port in Miami. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth will call Miami home, at least for a little while, a history-making move for the company.

After an “increasing demand from North American guests,” the ship will be making trips to the Caribbean from what many consider to be the cruising capital of the world, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

The ship will be in Miami from mid-October until April 2026, making trips that range from nine to 28-night voyages to locations such as Jamaica, Mexico St. Thomas, St. Lucia, Honduras, Mexico, Barbados and Puerto Rico. After its departure in April of 2026, the ship will return to Miami next October until April 2027.

Published on: September 11, 2025

Did You Fall on a Cruise Ship? Here’s What You Should Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

Teetering waves and non-code-compliant stairs or railings are a dangerous combination — one that has caused painful injuries for many Leesfield & Partners clients.

While many may not think about the various ways in which they can be injured when they set out on a cruise ship vacation, it doesn’t mean that accidents still aren’t a possibility.

And serious injuries from falls aren’t just something that occurs to the elderly. Data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) shows that falls occur across all age groups. Even so, the average age of passengers departing from PortMiami is 46.5 years old, according to Industry Reports from the Cruise Lines International Association, showing that relatively young individuals are still falling (no pun intended) prey to these incidents.

Published on: August 27, 2025

Ship Drifts for Hours After Power Failure. What this means for passengers.

By Leesfield & Partners

A major power failure Monday left a cruise ship with thousands of passengers drifting for hours off the coast of Italy, according to Cruise News Today.

An electrical issue the ship’s engines caused the outage, though onboard services continued with little disruption The ship required help from the Italian Coast Guard and two tugboats that guided it into Naples. The ship later regained partial engine power, arriving hours after it was originally meant to. The cruise line is conducting a full inspection and said the ship is expected to resume its sailing schedule Tuesday.

While this power failure was quickly addressed and resulted in limited disruption to passengers’ vacations, other engine failure, mechanical issues and fires do occur aboard ships. If not swiftly dealt with, however, there can be bigger consequences. The passengers of a 2013 cruise ship that lost power know this better than most. In that case, which was explored in a recent Netflix documentary, passengers were stranded without power for days in a stifling ship with no working bathrooms, creating a recipe for disaster.