One woman, in her 20s, is believed to have drowned after she fell from the balcony of Carnival’s cruise ship while sailing from Long Beach to Mexico.
Officials stated that the Carnival Miracle crew reported the woman missing around 3:30 a.m. on Saturday.
According to some reports, she fell off her balcony on the fifth floor of her stateroom onto waters 35 miles away from Ensenada in Mexico.
The Mexican Navy and the Coast Guard assisted in the search on Saturday morning and overnight, but around 10.30am on Sunday, the Southern California USCG announced crews were standing down after 31+ hours of search.
On Thursday, December 9, the Miracle left Long Beach and set sail to Ensenada. CBS reported that it was to be back on Saturday, December 11 as part a 3-day journey.
Onboard paramedics said that suspicions were raised about foul play. The picture taken from the deck showing the victim’s fall showed damaged pieces on the balcony.
Officials claimed that an unidentified female in her 20s was declared missing from Carnival Miracle at 3:30 a.m. on Saturday.
Onboard paramedic said that suspicions were raised about foul play. The picture of the deck from which the woman fell revealed broken parts of the balcony.
Crews searched the water and alerted passengers that someone had been lost overboard, as soon as they became aware of the situation early Saturday morning.
On Saturday, the ship was searched again after it returned to Long Beach, on Sunday.
The Carnival Miracle cruise ship boasts 12 decks and it has capacity for 2,100 people, but only about 1,100 appeared to be onboard, Daniel Miranda, a passenger onboard during the incident, said.
Miranda is a Northern California firefighter and spoke with the media during Ensenada’s cruise.
Mexican Navy and Coast Guard supported the search Saturday morning. However, at 10.30am on Sunday the Southern California USCG reported that the crews had stopped after more than 31+ hours.
On Thursday, December 9, the Miracle left Long Beach and set sail to Ensenada. The ship was to be back on Saturday, December 11th as part of its three-day journey. It was also searched Saturday after returning to Long Beach, California on Sunday.
“About 3:00am we heard a loud announcement on the ship, with a message warning us, “Man overboard!” Man overboard! Man overboard!”’ Miranda told CBS News.
“So, the ship was given very limited information. We were told that we had to continue searching for the woman, then they called us back to clarify. He said that the crews had been extremely tight-lipped, and they have, of course, used different parts of the ship to search for her.
CBS also reported that he was suspicious of foul-play
‘Someone has lost their life, whether it was done by accident or by foul play I don’t know – there’s some high suspicion of foul play,’ he told ABC 7.
We were woken by an announcement from the captain, which included a warning about being overboard. Man overboard! Man overboard!”’ Daniel Miranda said
On Saturday, the Mexican Navy and Coast Guard supported the search. She reportedly fell off her balcony on the fifth floor of her stateroom, and was swept into water 35 miles away from Ensenada in Mexico.
He said, “A lot of people are worried because it’s someone’s life, but there’s high probability that they won’t be found alive.”
After the ship reached Long Beach, FBI agents were waiting to aid in the investigation.
Miranda stated that crews were quickly rescued by small boats to help with a search and they did everything possible to make it happen.
USCG used a Fast Response Cutter, a 154-foot patrol boat, and a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, but officers are transiting back to the US now.
“They sent crew around the deck looking for someone out on the water to make sure they were able to spot them.” They had lights out in the water trying to flash out there, but again it’s pretty dark,’ he added.
Carnival Cruise Line made a statement Saturday regarding the incident.
“We informed Carnival Miracle guests about an incident that involved one of our guests, from her balcony in her stateroom… Our thoughts and support are with her and her family,” the statement said.