Couple left behind while Snorkeling

[1Kflyerguy]

I have always wondered about this when i go on a snorkel cruise... This seems like a nightmare.. but i do wonder if they wandered off somehow..

Of course I would expect the crew to perform a basic count of passengers...

CA couple says snorkeling tour group left them behind in waters off Lanai

"They thought they were going to die."

www.hawaiinewsnow.com

A California couple has filed a federal lawsuit against a Maui snorkeling tour company, claiming one of their vessels left them behind in waters off Lanai.

The lawsuit says Elizabeth Webster and Alexander Burckle were on their honeymoon when they booked a snorkeling tour with Sail Maui in September 2021.

The two declined to be interviewed for this story, but their attorneys say they were experienced snorkelers who had purchased tickets for Sail Maui’s Lanai Coast snorkel tour.

The vessel left Lahaina at 10 a.m. and arrived at the snorkeling site off east Lanai about 40 minutes later.

The lawsuit alleges that the waters became more turbulent and the two tried to get back to the catamaran, but then it departed without them.

“When they started to go back to the vessel, they noticed it seemed to be getting further away,” said attorney Jared Washkowitz.

“They kept swimming toward it, it kept getting further away, until they finally realized that the vessel left and that they had been abandoned in the water.”

 

[Ken555]

Seems like gross negligence.

What a horrible experience.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[sun starved Gayle]

Horrifying. I cannot even begin to imagine how that poor couple felt.

 

[DaveNV]

I wonder what the snorkeling company did when they got back to Maui and found two pairs of shoes and two sets of street clothes left behind. Oops!

Hope they resolve this one easily.

Dave

 

[pspercy]

Same thing happened on the Great Barrier Reef a few years ago.
They weren't missed until the tender reached the dock. They went back out but no signs found.

 

[jabberwocky]

And just as I was about to book a snorkel tour…I guess I’ll go with the private charter option!

 

[DaveNV]

And just as I was about to book a snorkel tour…I guess I’ll go with the private charter option!

I don't know - this company may be the safest one to book with. After this, I'll wager they're doing a solid head count on every cruise.

Dave

 

[dioxide45]

Perhaps they also need a buddy system. Buddy up with someone else, or another couple not actually traveling with you. Then when everyone is back in the boat ask everyone if their buddy is there. Of course, then does this also make the buddy liable?

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Perhaps they also need a buddy system. Buddy up with someone else, or another couple not actually traveling with you. Then when everyone is back in the boat ask everyone if their buddy is there. Of course, then does this also make the buddy liable?

When I have snorkeled on boat trips in Hawaii, this is what they have done. They also do body counts.

One trip, when we were snorkeling off of Na Pali, crew members were on paddle boards on the perimeters of the snorkeling area they established. If someone approached the perimeter, the crew members would shoo them back in. (I was one of those shooed back in.)

 

[pedro47]

Where these individuals the only one on this snorkeling excursion?

 

[legalfee]

We've done the Molokini snorkel. Plenty of boats there to catch a ride if you did get left.

 

[dioxide45]

We've done the Molokini snorkel. Plenty of boats there to catch a ride if you did get left.

This one was off of Lanai though, probably a lot fewer tours go there.

 

[Sandy VDH]

deleted

 

[1Kflyerguy]

Where these individuals the only one on this snorkeling excursion?

I am not familiar with this particular tour company, but most of these trips are group trips. The ones i have done usually have 10-20 guests.

 

[1Kflyerguy]

When I have snorkeled on boat trips in Hawaii, this is what they have done. They also do body counts.

One trip, when we were snorkeling off of Na Pali, crew members were on paddle boards on the perimeters of the snorkeling area they established. If someone approached the perimeter, the crew members would shoo them back in. (I was one of those shooed back in.)

We usually just snorkel off the shore, but have done a few boat trips over the years. I do recall the buddy system and watching them count passengers after each stop.

However i would guess most couples choose each other as their buddy, so leaving both behind that does not help much...

I spent many years of my career working in MFG and inventory management. Counting correctly is much harder than you might expect....

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Glad I saw this after my snorkeling tour in Mexico this week. We only had 3 people on our skiff. Some of those Hawaii tours are sardine boats. Easy to lose track of people.

 

[Passepartout]

They are attempting to sue for $5 million. That might change head counts. https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/ne...r,lack of organization and safety on the tour.

 

[NTP66]

I've been on many snorkel trips in Maui, all with Trilogy, and one thing I can confirm is that they have always taken multiple headcounts before the catamaran begins to move.

 

[dioxide45]

I've been on many snorkel trips in Maui, all with Trilogy, and one thing I can confirm is that they have always taken multiple headcounts before the catamaran begins to move.

They claim they did three headcounts. The problem was the first two were two people short but since the last one had all accounted for, they left. Other passengers though attested that they may have miscounted because people were moving all around as they were counting. They say they have instituted better controls since this incident.

 

[Passepartout]

They say they have instituted better controls since this incident.

When the suit is heard, we will find out whether or not a jury thinks this is an adequate response.

 

[geist1223]

Remedial actions are normally not admissible at Trial.

 

[Sandy VDH]

I was diving in Australia shortly after this couple went missing.

Disappearance of Tom and Eileen Lonergan - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

They changed the protocols, you had to sign back into a log once you got back onboard. They used to do magnets and just slide when you returned, but they changed that procedure.