A toilet used, but not flushed. And moldy lemons. What cruise ship inspections found
No barfing bartenders dotted the latest monthly roundup of cruise ship inspections, but some of the fruit that inspectors saw might make you want to do a little gastrointestinal refunding.
Six of the seven ships inspected in December by the CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program come from the fleets of Royal Caribbean Cruises or another line owned by Royal Caribbean. No warning is given before an inspection, which are done while the ship docked at a U.S. port. Scoring by the Centers for Disease Control peaks at 100, but even a score of 100 doesn’t mean there aren’t violations. A score of 85 or lower is failing.
Azamara Cruises
Ship: Azamara Journey. Inspected: Dec. 14. Score: 97. Standout violations: Maybe the food didn’t come from the cleanest place. Or the cookware and utensils.
“The potwash machine was out of service since October and parts were expected by March next year. The area was still serviced by a three-compartment sink but it was clear that this was not enough to handle all the soiled coming from the galley by the amount of soiled utensils to be cleaned.”
And after the cleaning, “The clean storage upper tubes were soiled with rust and debris. Clean utensils were stored on those tubes.”
Many places leaked. In the specialty galley potwash, “The rinse compartment of the three-compartment sink was not holding the water.”
A pizza galley utility sink was described as “continuously leaking.” Two kettles in the galley soup station had leaks that pooled on the deck below. A pantry had an undercounter warewash machine that didn’t function.
Celebrity Cruises
Ship: Celebrity Reflection. Inspected: Dec. 9. Score: 100. Standout violations: “One drop of water dripped from the deckhead onto thawing chicken wrapped in loose blue plastic.”
Despite the triple-digit score, there seemed to be some cleaning issues.
“The previously-cleaned shredder wheel for the deck-mounted shredder contained 12 slotted fasteners, many of which were soiled with white debris thought to be potato residue. Debris also accumulated along the outer rim.”
Also, “The shredder wheel for the deck-mounted shredder was corroded.”
The paper towels at the handwash station couldn’t dry anything because they were wet themselves.
Royal Caribbean Cruises
Ship: Allure of the Seas. Inspected: Dec. 1. Score: 99. Standout violations: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) can bring nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and tummyaches. Inspectors check how such cases are handled on current and past cruises.
“A food worker experienced an onset of AGE symptoms on Nov. 11 at (11:30 p.m.) but did not report to the medical center until Nov. 12 at 11:57 a.m. The crew member worked on Nov. 12 from 9:50 a.m. until reporting to medical.”
Bet you didn’t know this was a violation, but few would argue that it should be. “The jello-shot machine was not working at the time of the inspection. Staff stated this machine had not been working for at least three months.”
“Small bowls exiting the flight-type conveyor warewash machine had water pooled on the bottom inside the solid rim. These bowls were placed inverted and flat on the conveyor instead of angled to allow the water to drain. The pooled water had small dark flecks of debris.”
Then, there was the “dark dough” of undetermined age.
“On the baguette roller, three of the four corners on the roller top were soiled with an accumulation of a dark dough residue. The machine was in use at the time of the inspection, but the residue appeared to be more than a 24-hour accumulation.”
Ship: Anthem of the Seas. Inspected: Dec. 3. Score: 95. Standout violations: At a food service, inspectors noticed passengers using two big metal dispensing containers of milk and half and half that were past the four-hour throw-it-out time. The milk was only 15 minutes past, but the half and half was 30 minutes past milk midnight.
“Approximately 80 white plastic food containers were stored soiled near the vegetable preparation room.”
“Old food residue and a paper sugar packet was observed under an inverted coffee mug stored in a plastic wash rack at the clean storage area.”
Speaking of supposedly clean, “Two previously-cleaned and sanitized red serving tongs had food residue on the food contact ends.”
Also, as far as inspecting shower heads, “It was difficult for staff to verify which department, Housekeeping or Food and Beverage, was responsible for which rooms. Additionally, it was difficult for the Food and Beverage staff to demonstrate that shower heads were disinfected at least every six months.”
Ship: Brilliance of the Seas. Inspected: Dec. 19. Score: 92. Standout violations: At the pool bar walk-in refrigerator, “Green and white mold-like debris was noted on six lemons in a large plastic bin. Other lemons were sunken-in and showed signs of degradation. In an adjacent bin, another lemon was found with white mold-like debris.”
A non-food handler got hit with acute gastroenteritis symptoms at 2 p.m. Nov. 29 and kept working until heading for the doctor at 6:26 p.m. On Nov. 24, a nonfood-handler supervisor experienced AGE symptoms at noon, but didn’t go to medical until 4:53 p.m. “The crew member reportedly self-isolated in his cabin.”
“Several entries for the cooling of hot foods did not document the process from a temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit or above.” This matters for keeping food from becoming boats for bad bacteria.
“Additionally, staff explained that the reason for many entries for not having an initial cooling temperature at or above 135 degrees was because they were only partially cooked, for example prime ribs, but that was not documented on the log.”
The in-use rack-type warewash machine had no final rinse.
Silversea Cruises
Ship: Silver Shadow. Inspected: Dec. 3. Score: 96. Standout violations: When it comes to food watched for time, max limit four hours, the crew didn’t put any time labels on food because breakfast lasted from 6 to 10 a.m. The inspector noted, “However, there was no break listed on the time control plan between breakfast and lunch. Crew confirmed the rice was served at both breakfast and lunch.”
Also, there seemed to be a mixer mystery.
“The deck-mounted stand mixer was in use with light brown dough. The mixer was soiled with two other distinctively different brown colored food products on the food splash area above the mixing bowl. Crew were uncertain about what the products were and explained there was a recent change of staff in the area.”
Inside one of the ice bins, “the stainless steel ... showed signs of rust. Additionally, there were difficult-to-clean holes in the top of the bin. The ice machine was taken out of service for cleaning.”
Also, “in the four undercounter cabinets containing plate covers, there was excessive water, food debris, and general debris on the bottom of the cabinets. Many stacks of plate covers were resting in this soiled water.
“Additionally, the plate covers were wet on the top as well as inside. There was a metal bowl stored in one cabinet which had water pooled inside.”
The black rock oven contained “white, fuzzy debris on the black rocks stored inside the black rock oven. The inside of the unit was wet.” No other conclusions were drawn.
Handwash stations at La Dame’s galley and the Panorama Lounge bar area provided lukewarm water. At the pool bar handwash station, “the soap dispenser for the handwash station was full but did not dispense any soap. It was not mounted so it was difficult to use.”
In the galley men’s facilities, “The toilet had been out of service since Nov. 29, but the room smelled of urine. Crew confirmed it was likely being used for this purpose but not flushing.”
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 11:40 AM.
