A couple has filed a $5m lawsuit against a tour company in Hawaii, claiming it abandoned them in the middle of the ocean during a snorkelling tour while they were on their honeymoon.

Seemingly the couple were in a 44-strong group that set off on the adventurous snorkelling trip, in September 2021, with tour company Sail Maui.

According to NBC, court documents say the boat’s captain told everyone that the vessel would be anchored in the location for approximately an hour before sailing to the next location. The captain, however, did not inform the group the exact time they should be back on the boat.

The couple claim they were not given instructions on how to get back on the boat, or what to do in case of an emergency.

Their attorney, Jared A Washkowitz, says that the tour company “didn’t give set boundaries for snorkelling” nor identify a lifeguard for the excursion or make sure that a buddy system was in place.

Washkowitz told Insider that at one point the waters became increasingly turbulent and the couple attempted to swim towards the boat. However, after around 15 minutes of swimming, the pair discovered that they still had not made progress towards the boat.

‘The water was choppy and plaintiffs started swimming more aggressively towards the vessel,’ the suit states according to NBC. “At approximately 12.20pm, after another 15 minutes (approx.) of aggressive swimming, the vessel was clearly farther from plaintiffs than it was at the last time they had checked.”

The lawsuit claims that crew members did three headcounts, but according to other passengers, the crew did not ask them to stay still during the counting process.

“It was just too disorganised. Everybody kept moving, so they easily got missed,” Jessica Hebert, a Louisiana resident who was also on the tour, told Hawaii News Now, reports The Guardian.

“Our facts show that they did a headcount, came up two short, then they did another headcount, came up two short,” Washkowitz told Insider. The couple attempted to swim in the same direction that the boat was moving but the water became increasingly deep.

The couple then realised the vessel had left them and was not coming back so they decided that their only option for survival at that point was to return to shore. Seemingly they were extremely fearful and nervous about the decision because they were told in the safety briefing explicitly not to swim to Lanai and that shallow reefs were in the area.

They eventually reached the shore at around 1pm and were helped by an island resident.

This follows MIN’s recent report about a British woman who suffered horrific injuries after being sliced by the propeller of a dive boat while snorkelling in Mexico in December 2022.

Main image courtesy of Hawaii Tourism Authority.

The post Couple abandoned while snorkelling start lawsuit appeared first on Marine Industry News.