Norwegian Cruise Line is responding to passengers who were stranded on a remote African island for arriving “more than an hour” late to reboard the ship on the day they were left behind.
A spokesperson for the cruise line confirmed to DailyMail.com that the eight passengers “missed their 3pm onboard time by more than an hour” after returning from a private tour on March 27.
Their passports were handed over to local port agents and the group of six Americans and two Australians stayed on the island of Sao Tome and Principe.
They launched a desperate attempt to rejoin the ship in the following days, flying through six countries to reach Banjul, Gambia, where the ship was due to dock on April 1. However, adverse weather conditions meant that the ship never reached shore.
The group concluded their nearly 2,000-mile journey to Dakar, Senegal, on April 2, where the cruise line confirmed they embarked Tuesday morning.
Norwegian Cruise Line revealed that the eight passengers left on the island of Sao Tome and Principe arrived ‘more than an hour’ late to reboard the ship.
The six Americans and two Australians were on a private tour of the island of Sao Tome and Principe. The group concluded its nearly 2,000-mile journey to Dakar, Senegal, on Tuesday morning to rendezvous with the ship.
A seventh American, 80-year-old Julie Lenkoff, was coincidentally abandoned at a local hospital the same day after being “medically disembarked.”
Hours earlier, however, it was unclear whether all passengers would return on board.
speaking to USA TODAYJill and Jay Campbell, a couple from South Carolina, criticized Norwegian for failing to meet “a basic duty of care.”
“After what we witnessed, we truly believe that although there are a set of rules or policies that the ship could have followed, they followed them too rigidly,” Jill Campbell said.
‘I think they really forgot that they are people who work in the hospitality industry and that really the safety and well-being of the customers should be their first priority, and that should come first.
“We believe there was a basic duty of care that they had forgotten, so we are concerned.”
Their trip across Africa concluded days after the ninth member of their group, 80-year-old Julie Lenkoff, was sent home for medical treatment.
Lenkoff suffered a stroke during a different tour and, after evaluation by onboard medical staff, was sent to a local hospital.
She has since been reunited with her family in the United States, but her daughter and son-in-law are criticizing the cruise line for “abandoning” the elderly woman.
Jill and Jay Campbell were hesitant to return to the ship in Senegal, believing the cruise line failed in “a basic duty of care.”
Lenkoff was released from the hospital in a “coherent condition,” a cruise ship spokesman said, despite her family’s protests that she was “disoriented” and had trouble seeing.
The eight remaining passengers walked nearly 2,000 miles from the remote island to Dakur, first attempting to rendezvous with the ship in Banjul, Gambia. However, the ship was unable to dock there due to high tide.
According to the spokesperson, the eight guests will be reimbursed for travel expenses from Gambia to Senegal.
Lenkoff was “disoriented and had trouble speaking, seeing or moving the left side of her body” when she woke up, according to her daughter.
Despite her condition, Lenkoff was released from the hospital 24 hours later and took to the streets of an unknown city, leaving the family wondering why they were never contacted.
A Norwegian spokesperson stated that the woman was released in a “coherent state,” adding that the cruise line’s protocol is to “contact the guest directly, as we would have no authority to share any medical details with anyone else without their express consent.” “.
Upon landing in California, she was taken to Stanford University Medical Center, where doctors deduced she may have suffered a heart attack in addition to a stroke.
Also among the stranded passengers was a man with heart problems and an expectant mother.
A Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson told DailyMail.com that the eight remaining guests were cleared to rejoin the ship in Senegal on April 2.
“Despite the series of unfortunate events beyond our control, we will reimburse these eight guests for their travel expenses from Banjul, Gambia, to Dakar, Senegal,” the spokesperson said.
The cruise company reiterated that guests are responsible for ensuring they return to the ship at the posted time, “which is widely communicated via the ship’s intercom, in daily printed communication, and posted just prior to departure from the ship.”