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Law360 (February 8, 2021, 5:02 PM EST ) Celebrity Cruises urged a Florida federal court Monday to toss a proposed class suit lodged by a New York couple who say they caught COVID-19 onboard, arguing the couple cannot prove they were infected on the ship and cannot collect damages on claims for future health problems they might have stemming from the illness.
Celebrity said Fred and Marlene Kantrow do not allege in their suit when they first began to experience symptoms of COVID-19 and said they could have been exposed while traveling from New York to South America to board the Celebrity Eclipse.
"In other words, the Kantrows do not allege a factual basis for the premise that they were not exposed to COVID-19 while traveling to South America to meet the ship, but were instead exposed only after they boarded the ship," the cruise line said.
The claims for future physical injuries caused by contracting COVID-19 should be dismissed because "there is no factual, medical or scientific basis" for them, the cruise line added.
The Kantrows allege they contracted COVID-19 in March aboard the Celebrity Eclipse after the cruise line concealed the truth about the health of guests on board and continued to hold events, including an elbow-to-elbow salute to health care workers battling the disease. The Florida federal judge overseeing the case has dismissed the suit twice before but gave them one last chance to replead their claims.
The couple claim in their suit, filed in May, that among the roughly 2,500 passengers and 750 crew members they sailed with aboard the Celebrity Eclipse, at least 45 individuals tested positive for the coronavirus, and at least two died.
They boarded the ship on March 1, expecting to spend two weeks sailing from Argentina to Chile before heading home.
Chilean officials refused to allow non-Chilean passengers to disembark at their would-be final destination, the couple said. The passengers ultimately remained aboard the Eclipse until March 30, when it reached San Diego. By the time they set foot on solid ground stateside, the World Health Organization had identified the novel coronavirus as a pandemic.
The Kantrows say that as early as March 2, the day after the cruise commenced, someone on board began displaying "symptoms consistent with a positive COVID-19 diagnosis."
Despite signs that someone might be infected on board, the Kantrows said, nothing changed on the ship. Diners ate from buffets, and dancing and other social programming went on as originally planned. The Kantrows say the company told the passengers as late as March 28 that "all guests onboard remain healthy and happy."
They claim that Celebrity knew or should have known weeks before they set sail that such a voyage would be ill-advised in light of rapidly changing guidance on managing the "explosive contagiousness" of the virus.
The Kantrows are represented by Jason R. Margulies, Michael A. Winkleman, Jacqueline Garcell and L. Alex Perez of Lipcon Margulies Alsina & Winkleman PA.
Celebrity is represented by Scott D. Ponce, Alex M. Gonzalez and Sanford L. Bohrer of Holland & Knight LLP, and Jerry D. Hamilton, Evan S. Gutwein and Annalisa Gutierrez of Hamilton Miller & Birthisel LLP.
The case is Kantrow et al. v. Celebrity Cruises Inc., case number 1:20-cv-21997, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
--Additional reporting by Emilie Ruscoe. Editing by Regan Estes.
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