Mini-Cruise Cancelled For Deep Clean Of Fred Olsen Ship

Specialist illness lawyers representing victims who reportedly suffered illness on board Fred Olsen’s Balmoral cruise ship in May 2015, have urged the cruise operator to work quickly in order to thoroughly investigate fresh reports of an outbreak on board the vessel.
 
Fred Olsen has recently confirmed to media that it has cancelled a scheduled three-night mini cruise which was set to leave Southampton on 20th June, as a result of the suspected norovirus issues on its trip to Scandinavia that week.
 
It has been reported  that affected passengers on the 11-day Scandinavian cruise which departed on 9th June 2015 were confined to their cabins on board the ship as a result of the illness issues.
 
News of the latest problems come after Irwin Mitchell’s specialist travel lawyers have been asked to help over 60 passengers who voyaged on various Balmoral cruises throughout May 2015, including the Norwegian Fjords Cruise, which began on May 3rd 2015, the Islands of the Azores and Madeira Cruise, which began on 11th May 2015 and the European City Break cruise, which began on 24th May 2015.
 
The legal specialists, who have helped thousands of  passengers obtain justice following illnesses suffered whilst on cruise ships around the world, including Fred Olsen’s Boudicca vessel, are now urging the cruise operator to work quickly to investigate the problems and provide safety reassurances to passengers travelling on future cruises aboard the vessel.

Expert Opinion

“Having heard first-hand accounts of what passengers faced during the outbreak in May, we are shocked to see further reports of illness emerge on board the Balmoral.

“While it will cause disruption to passengers, it is welcome to see that the next trip for the Balmoral ship has been cancelled so that a full deep clean can take place. We hope that Fred Olsen will take all appropriate measures to prevent another outbreak from happening.

“In addition to this, we would urge Fred Olsen to fully review the outbreak to identify where improvements can be made to heighten hygiene standards and safety on future voyages.

“The nature of our work means we have seen many instances in which passengers have suffered serious long-term health problems following cruise illness outbreaks, so the seriousness of these issues should not be ignored.

“Our investigations into the cause of the illness on the Balmoral are underway, however we remain very keen to hear from anyone else affected who may be able to provide further information regarding the outbreak of illness, and the circumstances giving rise to it.” Amandeep Dhillon - Partner

Martin D’Arcy, 67, from Dorset is among the dozens of passengers that Irwin Mitchell is representing from the earlier outbreak on the Balmoral in May. Martin and his wife suffered illness symptoms including diarrhoea, vomiting, abdominal pains and lethargy and were confined to their cabin for several days during their 8 day cruise."
 
Commenting on the latest problems, Martin said: “Our holiday was supposed to be a relaxing break so we were gutted when we fell ill – it just ruined the whole break for us.”
 
“I couldn’t believe it when I heard that more issues have been reported. I just hope steps can be taken as soon as possible to ensure that no one else is affected by similar problems in the future.”