Good way to end up dead and not exactly fair in this case.
Very likely that most of these people had a ticket back to the States but because the airport, port and roads are closed they were unable to use them. It's not as if they lost all their money in a poker game and went to the consulate begging for a free ride back to the States. (Yes that does happen!)
There is literally no safe way for them to get out except this way.
But that begs the question. If they were ready, willing, and able to pay to get out on their own, why should they get a free cruise to Cypress merely because this arguably caught them by surprise?