From dangerous food to bad plumbing, cruise ships have gotten their share of controversial attention online, and one woman’s horrifying story certainly fits the bill. Recently, a TikTok user named Emily Claire Lee recounted her experience while on a Carnival Cruise, where her toddler was injured after being sucked between the metal door and elevator frame.
After detailing the ship’s conditions, the doctor’s negligence, and an unexpected $500 charge for her son’s care, the internet was of two minds on whether it was Lee and her husband’s fault, or if Carnival Cruise should’ve been held accountable for the child’s injury.
‘His fingers were then sucked between the door and the frame of the elevator’
On March 4, 2025, hairstylist and lash artist @emilyclairelee posted a video to her TikTok detailing a traumatizing experience her family endured while vacationing on a Carnival Cruise.
Lee began the video by saying that, on Friday, Feb, 28, her toddler was injured on the Carnival Panorama. She then went into more detail about how it happened. “We were exiting the aft elevator B, and my toddler used his hand to brace himself as he exited the elevator,” Lee said. “His fingers were then sucked between the door and the frame of the elevator.”
She detailed the state of the ship’s doors, saying they had a sharp metal seam—or flange—covered in scotch tape, which indicated to Lee that the door’s sharpness had been an issue before. “We believe the edges of the metal flange are what took the chunks of my child’s skin off of his fingers,” she said.
There were also no censors on the elevator doors to release her child’s fingers. Once the couple realized what was happening, Lee’s husband pried the door from the frame while Lee pulled her toddler’s hand out of the door frame. Lee recounts blood all over the floor of the elevator lobby, and on her husband (who was holding their child after his injury).
The medical center did not respond to Lee’s call with urgency, Lee recounted, and after bringing her child to the center they waited to see a doctor. After an hour, the doctor arrived, but said they would not stitch up the child’s hand because it would be “too traumatic.”
Instead, they glued the wound shut and put the toddler’s hand in an ill-fitted splint. After being told to sign on an electronic pad that was “discharge paperwork,” Lee questioned what she was signing, to which the nurse replied that it was not a bill.
Over 24 hours later, the blood from Lee’s son’s hand was still on the floor by the elevator, and Lee and her husband realized they’d received a $506 charge to their account. To make matters worse, while disputing the charge at guest services, Lee was told she was a negligent parent and that the ship couldn’t her with the the charge.
After calling Carnival’s 800 number and posting her story on Facebook and TikTok, Lee hadn’t received any response from Carnival Cruise Lines. “I’d like to give Carnival Cruise Lines an opportunity to make things right,” Lee said. “But if they chose to ignore me and will not reimburse us for the 506 dollars, I will be seeking a maritime lawyer.”
@emilyclairelee @carnival this is unacceptable, this could have been a completely avoidable scenario. Your elevators are not safe and you cannot market your cruise ship as family friendly if you don’t fix this problem. Your ship injured my baby and then you charged me $506. My 5 year old is traumatized from seeing his brother injured, and we spent what should have been a great final day of our trip absolutely mortified and were treated like garbage. Please make this right. #carnivalcruise #carnivalpanorama #mexicanriviera #travelreviews #cruisereview #carnivalreview #travelvlog #cruising #fyp #parati #carnivalcruiseline #travelingwithkids #travel #cruiseship #panorama ♬ original sound – Emily Lee
‘The mom-shaming comments are insane’
The TikTok video garnered over 60,000 views, 2,400 likes, and nearly 500 comments, with users both empathizing with Lee and blaming her for the incident. “This is the second TikTok I’ve seen where a child got hurt on Carnival. Absolutely horrible.” Read one comment.
“So your child lost his balance and stuck his hand in between closing doors and you blame someone else?! Maybe watch your child and protect them from closing doors. Entitled much?” Another comment read.
“Absolutely no lawyer will take this on. They will tell you that you were negligent and it will go nowhere,” read another.
The commenters defending Lee were shocked at those who found her to blame. “If the elevator door had been secured properly and had covers, this wouldn’t have happened. If someone hadn’t covered it in tape to fix it, this wouldn’t have happened…these comments are crazy,” read one comment. “The mom shaming comments are insane,” read another.
‘You also need to take accountability’
A day later, Lee posted another video to her TikTok, announcing that she was being reimbursed for her child’s medical expenses. She still hoped the company looks into the dangerous elevator doors and encourages users to watch @lexiemarierowe’s videos, another woman who—along with her toddler—was injured in a similar situation aboard a Carnival Cruise Ship.
@emilyclairelee Thank you @carnival for responding. Please look into fixing your elevator doors to make them safe. Also see @lexiemarierowe videos to make sure she also gets a proper response and her situation is handled as well. #carnival #carnivalcruise #travelreviews #carnivalreview #travelvlog #cruising ♬ original sound – Emily Lee
Despite Carnival taking some accountability and reimbursing Lee, comments on her second video also blamed Lee for the incident and diminishing both hers and Lexi’s traumatic experiences. “Please supervise your child on the elevator. That’s what’s safe for small children.” Read one comment. “You also need to take accountability,” read another.
“Lexi is just being dramatic,” Another comment asserted. “Yours is a real issue.”
Despite Lee’s upsetting experience, statistically, the risk of getting injured on a cruise ship is relatively low. According to a study done by International Maritime Health, 663 injuries were reported aboard cruise ships over a three-year period; only 12.5% were classified as serious.
The Daily Dot has reached out to @emilyclairelee via direct message on TikTok. The creator did not immediately respond to the request for comment.
The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
