P&O ‘working to determine cause’ of Dominica crash
P&O Cruises has responded to criticism following last week’s mini-bus crash in which a British customer was killed and nine other people were injured on an organised tour of Dominica last week.
Several people took to social media to criticise the company after the incident.
P&O responded to the criticism, writing on Facebook that it only works with ‘pre-approved tour operators that meet our exacting safety standards’.
It added: "Please rest assured the safety, security and welfare of all our guests and crew is our absolute priority, so we are working closely with all involved to determine the cause of this accident."
A customer still onboard Azura who had taken the same tour of Dominica but on a different bus, claimed on P&O Cruises’ Facebook page that the whole trip had been ‘cursed’.
Several others agreed that the roads in Dominica are in bad repair, and one wrote that the tour buses are old and in ‘questionable’ condition.
One previous P&O customer claimed he had been ‘fobbed off’ by the cruise line earlier this year when he had complained about the condition of the mini bus, its driver, and the condition of the roads in Dominica.
Another said P&O was putting ‘profit over lives’.
Several customers jumped to the cruise line’s defence following the crash, pointing out that the cause has yet to be confirmed and that early reports suggest that the tour bus driver was not at fault and the condition of the bus was not necessarily a factor in the accident.
One wrote: "I’ve been on a cruise ship excursion on Dominica and I found it to be well organised and the driver and tour guide excellent and I never once felt unsafe."
Another said: "We always do shore excursions booked through ship and can’t fault P&O for their standards. This is a very sad unfortunate accident that could happen anywhere. Thoughts are with the families involved."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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