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Published on: July 30, 2025

FBI Investigating Death on Cruise Ship. What to Know.

The FBI is investigating a death that occurred aboard the Carnival Dream, but little details have been released.

The incident happened on Wednesday, July 23, aboard the Carnival Dream near Belize City during a six-day western Caribbean voyage. Passengers told KHOU, a local news outlet in Houston, that they woke up to sounds of sirens around 3 or 4 a.m. Another passenger told reporters that she had heard an announcement requesting medical aid on the Serenity Deck.

The online rumors ranged from stories of a man who had been attacked to an incident at the onboard casino, thus prompting Carnival officials to release a statement to KHOU.

Published on: July 30, 2025

Woman Survives Stabbing Stemming from ‘Personal Dispute’ Aboard Cruise Ship, officials say.

By Leesfield & Partners

A woman working on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship who was stabbed by another member of the crew before he went overboard has survived her injuries, according to reporting from national news outlets.

The woman was stabbed multiple times in what cruise officials are calling a “personal dispute” on July 24. She was attended to by the ship’s onboard medical staff and is now in stable condition, Royal Caribbean said in a statement.

The incident happened around 7 p.m. while the ship was heading to the Bahamas’ CocoCay. The male employee who cruise officials said was involved in this incident allegedly fled the area where the stabbing took place before jumping from the ship into the water.

Published on: July 28, 2025

Cruise Passengers Stuck in Turkey After Ship Loses Power. What Happened?

By Leesfield & Partners

An electrical fire caused a power outage on the Celebrity Infinity Monday, causing a delay and forcing the ship to extend its stay in Kusadasi, Turkey.

The fire was quickly extinguished and no injuries have been reported, according to Cruise News Today, an online cruise vlog. The ship remained without power and had no updated for several hours, according to one passenger. The ship canceled the remaining port stops and will remain in Turkey for repairs.

As a result, passengers were given a 50% refund and credit toward a future cruise with the company.

Published on: July 28, 2025

Body of Missing Norwegian Cruise Ship Passenger Found on Trail, officials say

By Leesfield & Partners

Authorities have recovered the body of a missing cruise ship passenger after she went missing on a hike last week in Juneau, according to media reporting.

The body of Marites Buenafe, 62, of Kentucky, was found Thursday by an Alaska Army national Guard helicopter crew below the ridge line of the Gold Ridge Trail. Buenafe, a doctor with Uk Healthcare, a series of hospitals and clinics with the University of Kentucky, was reported missing to the Juneau Police Department on July 1 by family members. Her family told authorities that she had gone for a hike that morning and planned to take a tram part of the way up a mountain before walking to Gastineau Peak and Gold Ridge.

She did not return to the cruise ship that was docked in Juneau by its departure time.

Published on: July 10, 2025

Body of Missing Norwegian Cruise Ship Passenger Found on Trail, officials say

By Leesfield & Partners

Authorities have recovered the body of a missing cruise passenger after she went missing on a hike last week in Juneau, according to media reporting.

The body of Marites Buenafe, 62, of Kentucky, was found Thursday by an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter crew below the ridge line of the Gold Ridge Trail. Buenafe, a doctor with UK Healthcare, a series of hospitals and clinics with the University of Kentucky, was reported missing to the Juneau Police Department on July 1 by family members. Her family told authorities that she had gone for a hike that morning and planned to take a tram part of the way up a mountain before walking to Gastineau Peak and Gold Ridge.

She did not return to the cruise ship that was docked in Juneau by its departure time.

Published on: July 7, 2025

Father, Child Rescued After Going Overboard on Disney Cruise from Florida, officials say.

By Leesfield & Partners

A father went overboard after his daughter fell from the Disney Dream Cruise as it sailed back to Florida from the Bahamas Sunday, according to reporting from various media outlets.

The four-day cruise was sailing back to Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale when the child went overboard and her father followed after her. The child allegedly fell from the ship’s “deck 4,” according to media, which is about 20 feet above the waterline. That area has a walkable promenade with a railing and plastic covering meant to block anyone from climbing over.

The man and his child treaded water for about 20 minutes before they were rescued by crew, according to media.

Published on: July 1, 2025

Bus Malfunctions, heat and abandoned passengers. Find out what ‘went wrong’ on this cruise ship excursion.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least two passengers were left behind after an excursion “went wrong,” involving extreme heat and bus malfunctions, according to reporting from Cruise News Today.

A Norwegian Cruise Line excursion began to “fall apart” after mechanical issues caused a bus delay, said Cruise News’ Doug Parker. The two guests were left behind after a scheduled stop in Germany was cut sort during the excursion. The pair was helped by another cruise ship and was later able to re-board.

Thankfully, no injuries were reported in this incident, however, Leesfield & Partners attorneys knows that accidents and injuries can happen at any time.

Published on: June 27, 2025

Netflix’s New Documentary Releases Details of Horror ‘Poop Cruise’ Incident from 2013. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

The horrors of a February 2013 Carnival Cruise are being revisited in a new Netflix documentary that dropped this week, and the story is nothing short of a total shipshow.

What was meant to be a four-day roundtrip from Galveston, Texas, to Cozumel, Mexico, turned into at least 4,000 passengers and crew being stranded in the Gulf of Mexico for almost a week after a fire damaged cables powering the Carnival Triumph. The toilets began overflowing and there was sewage dripping down the walls, witnesses can be seen explaining in the documentary, which was released Tuesday.

‘It Got Bad Fast’

Published on: June 25, 2025

Man Accused of Assaulting Minor Aboard Carnival Cruise Ship. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

A man, 71, faces criminal charges after police say he grabbed a teenager while aboard a cruise ship off the Australian coast.

Jeffrey Mark Spiro, of New Zealand, was charged with deprivation of liberty and two counts of common assault.

The alleged incident happened on June 19 at around 11 p.m. aboard the ship where a 14-year-old girl was waiting near the elevators. Spiro allegedly grabbed the child and took her to the ship’s security office because he claimed she was running with a “small toiletry item,” according to reporting from cruise news sites. The item was later identified as a pair of tweezers.

Published on: June 18, 2025

Member of Cruise Ship Crew Injured in Fall. How Leesfield & Partners has Represented Passengers and Crew for Decades.

By Leesfield & Partners

While a cruise ship was docked in Santorini, Greece, a 31-year-old engine department worker fell, prompting an emergency evacuation.

The incident happened on Sunday, June 15, 2025, while the worker was heading down the stairs to the engine room. During the fall, he injured his left leg. He was transported to an emergency clinic, according to Cruise News Today, before being taken to a medical center on shore in Athens, Greece.

In nearly five decades of personal injury practice and representing countless passengers and crew hurt on cruise ships, Leesfield & Partners attorneys are familiar with the many ways in which injuries can occur on these ships. From terrible falls, excursion injuries, inadequate medical care and crimes aboard ships, our attorneys have seen it all — and all the ways in which cruise lines will attempt to skirt liability.