For the second time this year, Royal Caribbean is facing questionswhy it didn’t divert out of the path of a hurricane.
The Anthem of the Seas was buffeted by strong winds brought on by Hurricane Hermine exceeding 100 mph as it headed for Bermuda from New Jersey.
The line was criticized in February for a lack of contingency planning when the same ship was rocked by even stronger winds off the North Carolina coast.
That incident caused some damage to the vessel and injured four passengers.
Royal Caribbean has been accused of ‘putting money and profits ahead of safety.’
"This is inexcusable. The conditions are really bad and have not improved at all throughout the day," passenger David Hughes told TV station WNCN on Monday.
"At least half or more of the passengers and crew are sick and it’s getting worse" he added.
According to a tweet by meteorologist Ryan Maue the ship was ‘basically in the worst quadrant of post-tropical Hurricane Hermine.’
Another passenger, Robert McHugh, said dishes ‘were all over the place’ as diners tried to eat in the restaurant
"We should have never sailed yesterday, this is simply ridiculous. Royal Caribbean easily put money and profits ahead of safety," McHugh said.
In a statement to WNCN, Royal Caribbean said: "Anthem of the Seas arrived in Bermuda this morning, where she will overnight per her scheduled itinerary. While sailing yesterday, our captain informed guests that we had experienced higher winds and gusts for a 2-3 hour period. We’ll continue to share weather information with our guests throughout their trip."
