FED: Water Police called in to help handle unruly passengers

AAP General News (Australia)
12-08-1999
FED: Water Police called in to help handle unruly passengers

By Karen Michelmore

SYDNEY, Dec 8 AAP - Police have been called in to prevent a repeat of a drunken rampage
by several school leavers on a South Pacific cruise "holiday from hell".

The teenagers damaged cabins and sprayed fire extinguishers, while others on the Fair
Princess fought, swore and abused other passengers while bingeing on alcohol, said cruise
company P&O Australia.

The liner docked in Sydney yesterday before leaving last night on another cruise.

P&O Australia has now called in the NSW Water Police to help them refine their techniques
for dealing with unruly passengers.

The company will also limit the amount of duty free alcohol passengers can bring back
from port and drink in their cabins.

Today P&O Holidays managing director Phil Riley told AAP that three NSW police officers
boarded the ship last night as it left Sydney with another group of 900 celebrating school
leavers.

After the trouble on the previous cruise, P&O contacted each of the 197 passengers
aged over 30 booked on last night's holiday and six cancelled their bookings.

Last week four school leavers were kicked off the Fair Princess and several other passengers
complained about their South Pacific trip, which was overrun with more than 900 school
leavers.

Just 250 of about 1,150 passengers were aged over 22, Mr Riley said.

One young man who was asked to leave the ship in New Caledonia for fighting was thrown
out of his Noumea hotel room for the same thing the next day, he said.

"He continued to act in that manner. The boy has obviously got a problem," Mr Riley said.

He said he asked three members of the Water Police, including a youth counsellor and
crowd control expert, to join the cruise to help with the company's security techniques.

One problem was there was no legal restriction on the amount of alcohol passengers
could bring on to the ship because it was in international waters.

"We have put a company stop to that in future, ... not only with school leavers ...

only one litre of alcohol per person over the age of 18 will be permitted on board."

The company was prepared to search bags before passengers reboarded the ship.

"This has been a constant problem for us at Port Vila (in Vanuatu) where excessive
amounts of alcohol are sold at the duty free shop there to anyone of any age.

"They don't have the same sort of restrictions (that) we face."

Mr Riley said passengers who emptied the fire extinguishers would have been prosecuted
if they had been caught.

He said unruly behaviour occurred on other cruises.

"We try and identify that element and put them off."

Ten passengers on board the cruise have complained about not being told of the large
number of school leavers.

P&O is negotiating compensation with then on an individual basis, he said.

AAP km/sb/cjh/br i

KEYWORD: CRUISE NIGHTLEAD

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