2 crew members die aboard Holland America Line cruise ship in the Bahamas
Holland America Line cruise ship were killed on Friday following an “incident” in one of the ship’s engineering rooms, according to a statement from the U.S.-owned cruise line.The fatalities occurred on the Nieuw Amsterdam cruise ship while it was docked at Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas.Holland America said the two employees were killed during an “accidental steam release” around 9:20 a.m. local time.
USA Today identified the crew members as third engineer Joseph Terrado and wiper Wawan Gusnawan. The employees were from the Philippines and Indonesia, respectively.Their exact causes of death have not been publicly released.“All of us at Holland America Line are deeply saddened by this event,” the company said in a statement.
“We’ve been in contact with the families of both team members and are offering our support to them and to all of our crew at this difficult time. The safety, security and welfare of all guests and crew are the company’s absolute priority.”The cruise line said “the appropriate authorities” were notified of the deaths.
An investigation led by the Bahamas Maritime Authority is currently underway.Crew members onboard the Nieuw Amsterdam have been offered counselling by Holland America.The Nieuw Amsterdam initially set sail from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on a seven-night voyage beginning March 16. The crew member deaths came on the last full day of the cruise trip.Passengers told NBC News the captain cried while announcing the crew member deaths over the ship’s public address system.Laine Doss, who was travelling on the Nieuw Amsterdam, told the outlet the announcement made the mood of the voyage’s last day “extremely sombre.”“That entire scenario did affect the entire cruise,” Doss said.
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