The family of a tourist who drowned after saving a child struggling in the sea at Horseshoe Bay Beach are suing for negligence the cruise line that brought them to the island.

Hyon Duk Shin, 49, died on March 27, 2024, while visiting on the Norwegian Getaway with his wife, Yanli Gong, their two young sons and his mother, Kwang Shin, all from Pennsylvania.

His widow and mother’s joint lawsuit, filed on behalf of themselves and the children against Norwegian Cruise Line, claims that the company advertised an “easy” beach or swimming excursion for passengers to Horseshoe Bay, but failed to warn about its dangerous riptides and currents, the absence of any lifeguards and previous drownings.

The civil claim, which seeks damages, states: “NCL had notice of these dangerous conditions through public warnings from multiple government entities, available weather and sea condition forecasts, a variety of cruise passenger reports and prior similar incidents.”

It lists previous drownings at Horseshoe Bay and other South Shore beaches, and says Mr Shin and his wife would not have gone on the “recommended” excursion had the cruise line disclosed those deaths in its promotional material.

“As a direct result of the foregoing dangerous conditions to which plaintiffs were exposed, plaintiffs were injured,” the complaint claims, adding that the litigants demanded “judgment for all damages recoverable“ under the United States’ Death on the High Seas Act.

The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court in the Southern District of Florida, describes how Mr Shin, a civil engineer, and his sons stayed near the shore snorkelling in the shallows and playing football on the sand on the afternoon of March 27, 2024, while his wife and mother sunbathed on the beach.

At about 2.45pm, the trio re-entered the water and “shortly thereafter, the children came running back to their mother … crying because their father … had gone to save a girl who was drifting away due to the unperceived current and undertow. Mr Shin was able to rescue the girl”.

The complaint describes how by the time Yanli Gong, known as Ashley, located her husband he was “in the very back of Horseshoe Bay Beach” and “eventually, he started floating out of the bay, towards the location of the girl he had saved and the open ocean”.

It was clear to Mr Shin’s wife and mother that he was drowning and unconscious, and they “frantically yelled for help on the crowded beach, but there were no lifeguards on duty”.

Ali Watlington, a local who had noticed the dangerous rip currents from the road above, swam out to try to rescue the visitor, but attempts to resuscitate him once she got him to shore failed.

Ms Watlington was able to save another swimmer, who had tried to rescue Mr Shin and got caught in the rip current and undertow.

The lawsuit states: “Ali Watlington observed that Ashley Gong was in a state of hysteria as [she] watched her husband drown, the chaotic scene and attempts to revive him.

“ … Ashley Gong observed that her husband’s skin was still warm and pushed on her husband’s chest attempting to resuscitate him.”

The complaint details how the “minor plaintiffs” — the couple’s young sons — suffered “severe emotional distress” after their father died while they were “swimming in the very same waters, in the surf zone near the shoreline … witnessing the loss of their closest family member directly in front of them”.

It alleges that as a result of NCL’s negligence, the boys “have suffered, and continue to suffer, emotional distress which has resulted in physical manifestations including but not limited to anxiety, post-traumatic stress, insomnia, lack of appetite and other emotional and physical injuries”.

A GoFundMe page set up by a family friend after the tragedy for donations to help cover the children’s future educational needs described the father as a “hero” who "demonstrated extraordinary courage and selflessness when he saw a child in distress in the water“.

It added: “He leaves behind a grieving wife and two young boys, ages 7 and 9, who will forever miss their loving husband and father.

“Their loss is immeasurable and there are no words that can ease their sorrow.”

The legal complaint, dated June 10, 2025, and filed against Bermudian-registered NCL (Bahamas) Ltd, trading as Norwegian Cruise Line, refers to a warning issued by the US Consulate General in Bermuda about dangerous sea conditions less than a month after Mr Shin’s death.

That warning noted that lifeguards were in place on the main tourist beaches between May 1 and October 31 only, but the cruise season had lengthened beyond those dates.

The lawsuit details how an autopsy was “required to be performed” on Mr Shin before his body could be sent back to the US.

However, there has been no public inquest in Bermuda into his death, nor any of the other drownings at Horseshoe Bay and other beaches in the past two decades.

The Royal Gazette sought an update from Sergeant Lyndon Raynor, the Coroner’s Officer, on the investigation into Mr Shin’s death and several other recent drownings, including that of cruise ship visitor Jamie Lambros.

Mr Lambros, 48, died on October 7, 2024, also after saving a child struggling in the water at Horseshoe Bay. His death was followed a fortnight later by that of guest worker Angelito Manila, 44, who drowned at Elbow Beach.

Sergeant Raynor disclosed that a file was still to be submitted to the coroner by investigators regarding Mr Lambros and Mr Manila, but said he needed to do more research to find out the status of several other cases.

Chief Justice Larry Mussenden said in a statement, in response to questions about why so few inquests are held, that “the coroner exercises powers as set out in the Coroners Act 1938”.

He explained that Section 9 empowers the coroner to dispense with an inquest depending on the results of a post-mortem.

NCL said in a statement: “We cannot comment on ongoing legal matters.”

• To review the civil complaint, see Related Media

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Hyon Duk Shin complaint.pdf