Cruise Chef's Fingers Severed In Gruesome Docking Accident: 'Blood Was Gushing Down'

KEY POINTS

Leonel B. Pena, 73, lost his pinky, ring and middle fingers on his left hand on Nov. 11, 2021
The cook was attempting to dock the Majestic Princess yacht with rope, but the vessel moved
Pena is suing the ship's owner for unspecified damages

A 73-year-old man in New York is suing a New Jersey cruise agency after he lost several fingers while working as a chef for one of its ships in late 2021, court documents showed.

Leonel B. Pena lost three fingers on his left hand in a gruesome incident aboard Vista Yacht Cruises' Majestic Princess on Nov. 11 last year, the New York Post reported, citing a lawsuit.

Pena, who was hired as a cook, had just returned to Pier 36 in Manhattan following an afternoon cruise to the Statue of Liberty when he was handed a rope and "negligently ordered" to help secure the 110-foot yacht to the dock, according to court papers.

"I was asked to help assist in docking the boat. It wasn’t part of my job. … They tell me to do something and I do it," the Dominican Republic native told the New York Post through a translator.

However, the Majestic Princess suddenly moved as Pena was attempting to tie the vessel down, which resulted in the rope tightening and slicing off his pinky, ring and middle fingers, the suit claimed.

"I was in complete shock and didn't realize the fingers were amputated. I looked down and saw all the blood was gushing down and I was missing fingers," Pena said.

His fingers reportedly fell into the East River, and authorities had no chance to recover them by the time they arrived as the current was moving too much, Pena alleged.

The wounded Pena was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he underwent surgery.

He is now undergoing physical therapy three times a week and being fitted for prosthetics.

The incident left the cook of about 20 years feeling "very sad."

"My life has changed. I’m trying to adjust to the new normal. I don’t have use of my left hand and everything is difficult. I’m not working," Pena was quoted as saying.

He is now suing Weehawken, New Jersey-based boat owner Vista Yacht Cruises for unspecified damages.

"We believe that whoever did it thought it was a mere minor task to throw a rope around the capstan. My experts say that's ridiculous. Ropes around your waist, it can tear you in half. He wasn’t trained for that," Lawrence Goldhirsch, Pena's attorney, was quoted as saying.

Vista Yacht Cruises did not return messages seeking comment, according to the Post.