The search is being called off for a man, who fell overboard while on a cruise ship en route to the Bahamas. The 51-year-old man was onboard a Norwegian Cruise Line ship called the Norwegian Epic.
He fell overboard from the cruise ship when it was leaving Jamaica to Great Stirrup Cay. Following the incident, the cruise ship released a statement.
"The authorities were immediately notified, and a search and rescue operation under the guidance and oversight of the Bahamas Rescue Coordination Center went underway," a Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson told DailyMail.com. Sadly, the search did not turn up any sign of the man.
Cruise Ship Tragedy
As such, the cruise ship was "released by the authorities to continue its voyage." The man was traveling with his family, which are being "attended to and supported during this very challenging situation." The cruise ship left Florida for a 7 day adventure at sea.
For now, the ship has been diverted to Nassau. So far, they haven't revealed the identity of the man overboard. The Holland America Line's Zuiderdam had also been nearby and assisted in helping to try to rescue the man. Crewmembers shot a flare in the water to mark the ship's position where the man took his fateful plunge.
Sadly, rescue efforts proved to be less than fruitful. Search and rescue ran out of sunlight to properly find the missing man. A video showed a flare in the water. The passenger said that the ship circled the water near where he went in.
"They put a flare, they're circulating. We did an entire circle looking for the guy that jumped off the boat. He jumped, he fell and bounced off of one of these [lifeboats] and fell in the water," she said.
"Some people have binoculars and are trying to look out in the water," she also said. "Poor baby. I hope there's a miracle. I hope there's a miracle and they're able to find him."
Exactly what happened remains unknown. But it's another tragic occurrence for those looking to just have a little get away at sea.
