Tuesday, November 6, 2007

From the shore excursion department:

The Palm Beach Post reports of the death of a cruise ship passenger while ashore. This gentleman rented a motor scooter while ashore in Nassau.

Like so many others who die tragically, he may have forgotten he was doing something he wasn't used to.

The activities look easy because, as in this case, we all drive, but that can lull us into a false sense of security. People tend to forget there is actually an extra element of danger involved. That's compounded by the fact that you aren't really used to doing the activity in this particular way. In this case, this man probably wasn't used to driving a motor scooter, and since he was a Florida resident, he wasn't used to driving on the left side and having the controls reversed.

If there is some good that can be brought out of tragic incidents such as these, it is that they should serve to remind the rest of us that there is an element of danger to many of the activities available ashore. Whether it be parasailing, snorkeling, driving a motorboat or even just driving a motor scooter, they may look easy, but we shouldn't forget to add an extra big element of caution while we're having fun. We just have to remember that we aren't invincible.