Air and surface crews are searching for a 30-year-old man who reportedly jumped from the Carnival Elation cruise ship 95 miles off the coast of Melbourne, Florida, on Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Twitter.
#Breaking @uscg air & surface crews are searching for a 30-year-old man who went overboard from the Carnival Elation, 95 miles east of Melbourne, Florida, Sunday morning. #CG is actively searching with crews from air stations Miami, Clearwater & Coast Guard Cutter Tarpon#SAR pic.twitter.com/tl7zkbW6z6
— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) July 24, 2023
The man, who has not yet been identified by authorities or by Carnival, reportedly jumped from the ship while it was returning to port in Jacksonville, Carnival said in a statement obtained by WKMG Orlando.
His traveling companion reportedly notified the cruise line after he had not been seen all day Sunday, Carnival said. “Sadly, after an exhaustive on-board search and a review of security camera video it was determined that he jumped,” Carnival’s statement read. (RELATED: Cruise Ship Docked At Grand Turk Island Goes Up In Smoke)
Carnival’s Elation, a massive vessel weighing nearly 72,000 tons with a capacity to hold almost 2,200 guests, was returning to its home port in Jacksonville after a four-day trip to the Bahamas, WKMG reported.
Authorities on land were notified of the incident, and the ship’s crew were advised to continue to Jacksonville, according to News 4 Jacksonville.
The Coast Guard said its ongoing search is being conducted with crews from air stations in Miami and Clearwater and with the assistance of Coast Guard Cutter Tarpon, an 87-foot patrol boat typically stationed in Charleston, South Carolina.