Roach traps in food areas, broken refrigerators and dishwashers and filthy ice machines are just a few of the violations that Holland America's Veendam received during its latest health inspection.
In a rare incident for cruise ships, Holland America's Veendam failed the health inspection that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted last month. The 1,350-passenger ship underwent a surprise inspection on August 19.
The CDC conducts surprise inspections of cruise ships in U.S. ports as part of its Vessel Sanitation program twice a year. The ships are graded based on a score of 100 and anything below 86 is considered failing. Veendam only scored a 77.
The findings were a bit surprising as the ship passed all of its previous inspections since it started sailing in 1996. During the previous inspection in April, the ship received a 93.
However a detailed report shows why the Veendam scored so low this time around. Inspectors found live flies in a pastry storage locker, a provisions room, a prep room and in several galleys. The crew had to be told to control insects, rodents and other vermin in their food and preparation areas.
The inspectors also found that refrigerators and dishwashers needed to be repaired. A leaky waterline was dripping dirty water into the dishwasher after the dishes were cleaned. Crews were seen putting the dirty dishes into storage racks to be used on board.
According to the Vessel Sanitation Program, food employees must cover their hair, but they found a cook with an unrestrained goatee.
Other violations include leaky faucets and ice machines, a lack of utensils in self-service food areas and a lack of a warning about raw food consumption.
Inspectors noticed that managers continued to let these things continue.
"Several managers were observed in the area, but they did not shut down the outboard flight-type conveyor warewash machine for repair before the inspector arrived," the report notes.
In a statement sent to CruiseCritic, Holland America says that they've fixed the issues since the inspection.
"The score resulted largely from one area of the ship's overall operation," the line says in the statement. "All the issues raised in the report were immediately addressed and have now been corrected. We have also ensured that our management and training practices in this area have been refocused to ensure continued success."
Holland America notes that the Veendam rarely has issues with inspections. "While unacceptable for Holland America Line, the unsatisfactory score is highly unusual and an aberration," the company says. "We are confident that this will not occur again, and that Veendam's (CDC) scores in future will return to their consistently high levels."
Failing a health inspection is very rare among cruise ships. Many ships even achieve perfect scores. Royal Caribbean's Monarch of the Seas and Cunard's Queen Mary 2 were the only other ships to fail the inspection within the past few years.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
