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3 Million Dollar Settlement for Cruise Ship Slip Injury

A woman, who slipped and fractured her knee cap on a Carnival cruise ship, has been awarded almost three million dollars in damages.

Denise Kaba from Florida was a passenger on the Carnival Pride in August 2009, when she slipped and fell on the pool deck which had been treated with a resin that made it hard and slippery when wet.

As a result of her slip and fall, Denise suffered a fractured patella and had to undergo surgery six times to enable it to heal correctly. It was also claimed in her action at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida that she may have to have total knee replacements in the future.

Denise´s legal representative alleged in court that Carnival were aware of previous injuries associated with slips on the pool deck since it had been treated, yet had done nothing to make the surface safer or warn travellers of the potential dangers.

Agreeing with Denise that Carnival were liable for her injuries, U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungara awarded 2,998,155.70 dollars in damages, consisting of more than 220,000 dollars in past medical expenses, nearly 375,000 dollars in future medical expenses, just over 170,000 dollars in loss of earning capacity, 200,000 dollars for pain and suffering in the past and nearly 2 million dollars for future non-economic damages.