Florida Keys Passenger Overboard: Ship, Coast Guard Search for Man

A 47-year-old man went overboard on a Florida Keys cruise Sunday night, and it is unclear whether he fell or jumped off the ship.

The search for the unidentified man continued Monday, with the U.S. Coast Guard tracking the path of the Royal Caribbean Cruises ship the Liberty of the Seas.

The cruise line said in a statement that the man jumped overboard, but the Coast Guard said that wasn’t certain.

“A review of the ship’s closed-circuit camera footage observed a 47-year-old male guest from the U.S. climbing over the railing and going overboard from deck 12. The location of the ship at the time the guest went overboard was marked on the ship’s Global Positioning System (GPS), and the ship, along with the Coast Guard, conducted a search for the missing guest,’’ Royal Caribbean said in a statement, according to the Miami Herald.

Chief Petty Officer Ryan Doss told the Sun Sentinel, “We're not ruling out anything. We are still hoping for a positive outcome."

Passengers on board the ship shared their concern about their shipmate’s fate online:

The fact that someone jumped off is still bothering me though!! Heart goes out to the family #LibertyoftheSeas #royalcaribbean #poorkid

— alex (@5007_alex) March 23, 2015

Video of search boat last night from our balcony on #LibertyoftheSeas #prayers for his family pic.twitter.com/H7Jd8pCfRU

— mike wyatt (@mwyatt024) March 23, 2015

What a crazy cruise! Left the dock 8 hours late due to repairs to the ship. Last night someone jumped off from 12th deck #LibertyoftheSeas

— Tyler Zegers (@TylerZegers28) March 23, 2015

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