Cruiser who was injured on Icon of the Seas waterslide incident plans to sue

• A Royal Caribbean passenger who was injured on an Icon of the Seas waterslide plans to sue the line.
• An acrylic panel broke on the slide, with video showing water gushing out of the ride.
• The passenger was riding a waterslide when his skin was “sliced through”.

A Royal Caribbean passenger who was injured on a water slide onboard Icon of the Seas, intends to sue the cruise line, according to his lawyer.

The incident took place on the ship last Thursday when the man was on the ‘Frightening Bolt’.

When he was travelling down the slide, an acrylic glass panel on the left side of the waterslide cracked and created a hole.

According to the man’s attorney, Alex Perez, the man’s skin was “sliced through” by the glass and the man is planning to file a lawsuit in response to his injuries.

At the time of the initial report, it was not clear how serious the passenger’s injuries were. RCI confirmed he had received medical care.

A Royal Caribbean Group spokesperson told Local10 in a statement Friday: “Our team provided medical care to an adult guest when acrylic glass broke off a water slide as the guest passed through the slide.” The cruise line said the water slide was closed for the remainder of the trip, pending an investigation.

A video of the incident that was shared on social media showed water gushing from the hole as passengers looked up from below.

Lillian Destefano, who witnessed the incident, said she was thankful the situation was not more serious.

“As I understand it, it was cracked,” she told Local10, referring to the slide. “Like the gentleman that went before him, who just got cut slightly, and then when the other gentleman went down, it sliced him, but he passed it, and then the glass fell and the water gushed. No one fell through, thank God.”

The cruise travelled to Royal Caribbean’s Coco Cay island before returning to Port Miami on Saturday morning.

Slide Safety and the Icon’s Track Record

The “Frightening Bolt” is part of the ship’s much-promoted Category 6 Waterpark, boasting six groundbreaking slides—among them, the tallest at-sea drop, a trapdoor launch, and a full 360° loop.

While such attractions offer unparalleled thrills, water slide accidents on cruise ships remain exceptionally rare. A legal summary notes that when they do occur, causes often include inadequate maintenance, poor inspections, operator negligence, or overcrowding. Operators may face liability for injuries.

Icon of the Seas has an otherwise strong safety record. In June, the ship earned a perfect score of 100 from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) during a sanitation inspection.

But he vessel has experienced several alarming incidents in recent months—including a crew member who tragically stabbed a colleague before going overboard, and a guest who almost fell from an infinity pool.