A pair is suing a Hawaii tour company for $5 million after they are saying they were abandoned within the ocean while snorkeling on their honeymoon.
Alexander Burckle and Elizabeth Webster went on the snorkeling trip to Lanai, a small island near Maui, in September 2021.
Then the waters got turbulent, they said. Suddenly, the boat from Maui Sail Company was gone.
After they realized the boat had left, the couple tried to maintain afloat and make distress signals, but they eventually ended up in even deeper, choppier water, in response to court filings.
The newlyweds “were starting to panic and were struggling to swim within the ocean conditions,” they said within the litigation. “They feared that drowning was imminent.”
Nonetheless, the pair was eventually in a position to make it to the shore of Lanai. By the point they reached the island they were “fatigued and dehydrated,” in response to the lawsuit.
Webster tried writing “SOS” and “Help” within the sand, but no boats got here to their rescue, although local residents later found them, gave them water, and allow them to use their phones.
Webster later called Sail Maui, which didn’t notice that anyone had gone missing on the tour, in response to the legal filing.
Jared Washkowitz, the couple’s attorney, told Insider that the tour company was disorganized and “didn’t give set boundaries,” discover a lifeguard, or ensure snorkelers used a buddy system.
He also said the corporate conducted three headcounts, but still never realized the pair was missing until it was too late.
In the long run, Washkowitz said the incident could have had a rather more tragic ending.
“They spent plenty of time within the water and in the event that they weren’t young, healthy individuals who were athletic,” Washkowitz said, “they probably would’ve drowned.”
