JACKSON, MS (Mississippi News Now) -
"That's something you hear about it's not something that happens to you," said Triumph cruise passenger Brooklyn Burgess.
That's probably the sentiment most Triumph cruise passengers had while stuck in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico for nearly a week.
Brooklyn and her mom Robin have a few souvenirs from the ship, including a clean, and now infamous red bag passengers had to use as a toilet.
"The crew that was on the ship was phenomenal. They really worked super, super hard and tried to be pleasant and smiling and see about us when they were living in the same conditions we were," recalled Robin Burgess.
The Carthage woman says she tried to stay positive and not let her emotions show while the ship was stranded but that soon ended when Triumph docked.
"All the emotions you had just started pouring over," said Robin.
Now worry shifts to the future, Brooklyn could loose college credit for missing too many days.
Carnival has offered a refund and a credit for a future cruise, as well as $500 per passenger.
"I don't know that's enough, what they've done. I think that that's really what should be expected. It's surely not above and beyond," said Robin.
The Burgess family has spoken with Jackson attorney John Arthur Eaves Jr., who has told WLBT he is working on litigation to file a claim against Carnival.
Both have concerns about cruise liners.
"I would just like to be assured that yes, these ships have undergone a certain standard and have been required to meet that," said Robin.
"The International Maritime Organization sets the standards that should be followed. We don't think even they are high enough, but even those standards are not mandatory to be followed because it's a part of the United Nations they are purely advisatory," explained Eaves.
Suing a cruise liner can be difficult. Eaves says you must file the claim where it is based. You also agree to certain terms when accepting your ticket, which is usually written in fine print and few people ever read them.
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