Cruise Law News : Maritime Lawyer & Attorney : James M. Walker : Walker & O'Neill Law Firm : Admiralty Law, Cruise Ship Accidents & Injuries

A passenger aboard the Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas cruise ship states that an engine room fire broke out ten days ago.   

According to a comment on the Cruise Critic message board, the incident occurred on November 13th while the Adventure of the Seas was making the crossing across the Atlantic. A fire on board caused the cruise ship to lose power and electricity for about two minutes. Alarms sounded intermittently. Some passengers smelled or observed smoke. Later, some passengers were later told that a "power surge" caused an engine fire while others said the captain mentioned switching over to a second set of engines.

Apparently no one was injured and the ship continued on its way.

Other than this mention of the alleged incident on Cruise Critic, there are no other references to a fire on the Adventure of the Seas which I have located.

Although the incident sounds minor, there is nothing insignificant about even a small fire in an engine room of a large cruise ship with several thousands of passengers aboard in the middle of the ocean.

There have been over 80 cruise ship fires in the last two decades.  Read about some recent cruise ship fires here.

Anyone else have any information?. 

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Yesterday we published an article about a Royal Caribbean crew member who sexually assaulted a 14 year old girl aboard the Adventure of the seas cruise ship.  You can read about the alleged crime here. 

You can read the criminal complaint and violence of the alleged act here.

This case involves a Roal Caribbean "pool attendant" Fabian Palmer who seems to befriendly with all ages of the opposite sex.

The mugshot of the arrested Royal Caribbean crewmember is below:

Read our prior article: Royal Caribbean Crewmember Indicted For Sexually Abusing 14 Year Old Girl

Think sexual assault of children is "rare" as the cruise lines want you to believe?  Consider reading these articles:

Sexual Assault of Children on Cruise Ships - A Problem the Cruise Community Wants to Forget

Why Cruises are NOT the Best Vacations with Kids

Should Travel Agents Be Liable For Falsely Representing That Cruises Are Safe For Kids?

Passenger Indicted for Sexual Abuse of 13 Year Old Girl on Disney Wonder Cruise Ship

Top Ten Reasons Not To Cruise: No. 1 - Cruise Lines Are A Perfect Place To Sexually Abuse Children

Celebrity Cruises Crew Member Arrested on Child Porn Charges  

Cruise Ship Sexual Assault: Carnival Bartender Gets Three Years For Raping Fourteen Year Old Passenger

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The Baltimore Sun reports today that a Grand Jury in Baltimore, Maryland indicted a Royal Caribbean crewmember of sexually abusing a minor during a cruise ship out of Baltimore. 

According to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Baltimore, crewmember Fabian Palmer, age 25, befriended a 14 year old girl and her family during a cruise that departed from Baltimore on December 17, 2010.

The newspaper reports that on December 23, 2011, the victim told authorities that she was alone on a deck on the cruise ship when crewmember Palmer took her into a men's locker room and "began having sex with her."  He stopped only when another employee knocked on the door.

The cruise ship's CCTV video cameras captured images of the crewmember, the victim and a second employee outside the locker room around the same time that the victim said the abuse occurred, according to the newspaper.  During an interviewed by Royal Caribbean security, crewmember Palmer admitted having sex with the girl, but claims that he believed that she was 16.

The newspaper does not identify the cruise ship, but it appears that it involved the Adventure of the Seas.

The Grand Jury returned the indictment yesterday.

The FBI has special maritime jurisdiction to investigate crimes like this involving U.S. citizens on the high seas.  An adult engaging in sexual intercourse with a 14 year old minor is in violation of federal law and is considered to be "sexual abuse" which can be prosecuted by the Department of Justice. 

Mr. Palmer's facebook page indicates that he is from Jamaica and worked as a pool attendant on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship.  His facebook page shows him fraternizing with numerous women around the cruise ship pool and other areas of the ship.  The photos are all from his facebook page.

This incident comes at a time when the international media is reporting on the rape of a 15 year old girl on another Royal Caribbean cruise ship, the Allure of the Sea.

The newspaper reports that Royal Caribbean did not immediately respond to a request for comment today.

A similar incident occurred in November on a Carnival cruise ship when a crewmember identified as Kert Clyde Jordan, age 35, a waiter from the country of Grenada, took a 14 year old child into a bathroom on the Carnival Liberty cruise ship. 

He was indicted on sexual abuse and is in jail in Miami awaiting trial.  

You can read about that incident here and here.

Do you have information about any of these crewmembers or incidents?  Please leave a comment below.  

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