A luxury cruise ship flunked a surprise sanitation inspection, after investigators with the Centers for Disease Control saw crew members repeatedly trying to hide 15 trolleys of food from the ship galley to dodge scrutiny.
The CDC said in a recent Vessel Sanitation Program report that the cruise ship Silver Shadow — part of the Silversea Cruises luxury line that charges passengers an average $5,000 per week — was given a surprise inspection on June 17 during a stop in Skagway, Alaska.
The inspection came on the heels of an anonymous crew member’s complaint about the ship’s handling of food, CNN reported.
The crew member sent pictures of meat that had been placed in cabin sinks and trays of food sitting in corridors outside cabins to CDC officials, CNN said.
Inspectors boarded the ship and cited officials for what they described as an “organized effort” to hide trolley carts of food in crew cabins to “avoid inspection,” CDC found, CNN reported.
Crew members told inspectors that superiors ordered food to be stored inside their cabins — rather than in sanitary and refrigerated kitchen areas. And a contracted pastry chef said that the food crew members were told to keep in their cabins included trays of salami and blue cheese — items that require refrigeration.
The ship was given a failing grade of 82. Anything below 84 is “less than satisfactory,” the CDC says.
A spokesperson with the company said in an email to CNN that ship executive were “deeply disappointed” in the CDC’s report.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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