Princess Cruises has been hit with a growing number of coronavirus lawsuits after deadly outbreaks on the Diamond Princess, Grand Princess, and Ruby Princess cruise ships.
UPDATE: Princess Cruise Lines Hit With COVID-19 Lawsuits After Sailing Ships During Outbreak
In June 2020, Princess Cruise Lines was hit with 2 lawsuits from passengers who accused the company of continuing to sail ships during outbreaks of COVID-19 on the Grand Princess and Ruby Princess. Click here to read more.
Son of Man Who Died of Coronavirus Files Lawsuit Against Princess Cruises
In May 2020, the son of a 74 year-old man who died after testing positive for coronavirus filed a lawsuit against Princess Cruise Lines and Carnival Cruise Lines, according to CBS Los Angeles.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Carl E. Weidner, a retired steel worker from Pennsylvania who was “forced to die alone” after being infected with COVID-19 on a cruise to Hawaii in March.
Princess Cruises is accused of negligence for allowing thousands of passengers to board the cruise after the previous voyage had a coronavirus outbreak, but failing to warn the new passengers.
Princess Cruises Hit With Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Princess Cruises was hit with a wrongful death lawsuit by the family of Chung Chen, a 64 year-old man who died on April 4 after a trip on the Ruby Princess in which he was infected with COVID-19.
California Couple Files Lawsuit Against Princess Cruises for Coronavirus Outbreak
In April 2020, Princes Cruises was hit with a lawsuit from a California couple who were both infected with COVID-19 during a 15-day cruise on the Diamond Princess, according to CBS Los Angeles. One of the plaintiffs, Farah T., said, “I thought I was going to die on this ship.”
Coronavirus Lawsuits Blame Princess Cruises for Deadly Outbreak
The first coronavirus lawsuits against Princess Cruises were filed in March 2020, soon after thousands of Americans were evacuated from the Grand Princess and completed their 14-day quarantine in San Francisco.
The lawsuits claim that Princess Cruise Lines knew “at least one of its passengers from the prior voyage … had symptoms of coronavirus, and yet it made the conscious decision to continue sailing the voyage that began February 21, 2020 with another three thousand passengers on an infected ship.”
Diamond Princess COVID-19 Outbreak
The outbreak on the Diamond Princess was first reported on February 3 off the coast of Japan, with 10 illnesses. By February 19, 712 of 3711 passengers and crew (19%) tested positive for COVID-19. At least 14 deaths have been linked to the outbreak, and 3,000 passengers had to be air-evacuated by their home countries, according to a study of the outbreak published in the Journal of Travel Medicine.
Grand Princess COVID-19 Outbreak
The Grand Princess cruise ship sailed from the U.S. to Mexico in February and March 2020. On March 6, the first cases of COVID-19 were confirmed when the Grand Princess was off the coast of California. Out of 3533 passengers and crew, at least 122 have tested positive for COVID-19 and 7 deaths have been reported.
Ruby Princess COVID-19 Outbreak
The Ruby Princess departed on March 8 out of Sydney, Australia. Out of approximately 3800 passengers and crew, more than 850 have tested positive for COVID-19 and 21 deaths have been reported in the U.S. and Australia. The voyage is now the subject of a criminal investigation after 2,700 passengers were allowed to freely disembark in Australia without quarantine.
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