Witnesses speak out after passenger 'sliced open' as waterslide breaks on world's biggest cruise ship
Topics: Royal Caribbean, World News, Health
Liv Bridge
Featured Image Credit: Bloomberg/Getty
Topics: Royal Caribbean, World News, Health
Witnesses have now spoken out about the horrific incident where a waterslide broke and 'sliced' a passenger on the world's biggest cruise ship.
On Thursday (August 7), passengers aboard Royal Caribbean's 'Icon of the Seas' ginormous cruise liner could do little but watch on in horror and desperately try to alert operators after a fellow traveller was left injured by the 'Frightening Bolt' attraction.
The vessel was out at sea between Miami and the firm's private island, Perfect Day at CocoCay, when a section of the slide cracked and created a jagged edge of acrylic glass.
The crack appeared to turn into a huge hole, forcing water to come gushing out, while the unsuspecting passenger tried to pass the dangerous spot.
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The unnamed man is believed to have sustained lacerations to his back and legs while attempting to pass down the water slide from the 16th floor of the ship, though Royal Caribbean officials have confirmed the guest did not fall through the hole.
He is believed to be in stable condition.
At the time, echoes of 'Oh my God' and desperate pleas to 'Stop the slide!' were heard all around the lower decks from passengers, who could see the damaged portion of the slide and water funnelling out while fearing the worst for the injured adult.
Now, several passengers have spoken out about what they saw, with many even claiming the traumatic incident may have put them off cruises for life.
"We saw the gaping hole," one person said to NBC6. "The water was coming out. It was kind of disturbing to see it because it was a crazy slide, and it was really scary."
Another recalled how they had just been on the slide a mere 20 minutes prior to the incident, while someone else said: "It’s a little frightening. It could’ve happened to us, and I'm glad it didn’t."
"I will not be going on slides like that ever again," another passenger, called Sophia, said. "Definitely not."
The passengers also claimed they were never told anything by officials as it happened nor afterwards, allowing rumors of the malfunctioning slide and the status of the injured victim to spread among fellow guests.
In a statement to the outlet, a spokesperson for Royal Caribbean said: "The guest is being treated for his injuries. The water slide is closed for the remainder of the sailing pending an investigation."
The company has since reiterated that the slide 'remained closed for the rest of the voyage while engineers assessed the damage'.
"The company has not provided a timeline for reopening and is investigating whether the failure was due to a manufacturing defect, installation issue, or an unexpected impact," the statement continued. "Other pools and water attractions on board remained open, but passengers noted an increase in visible safety checks across the ship in the days following the incident."
Meanwhile, in an additional comment to UNILAD, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson added: "The health and safety of our guests, crew, and the communities we visit are our top priority.
"To maintain an environment that supports the highest levels of health and safety onboard our ships, we implement rigorous cleaning procedures, many of which far exceed public health guidelines."
While in an earlier statement, the cruise liner addressed the incident and confirmed that it was a man who was injured, before adding that its team team 'provided medical care' to the guest after 'acrylic glass broke off a water slide as the guest passed through the slide'.
"The water slide is closed for the remainder of the sailing pending an investigation," it said.