Father of cruise passenger, 20, who jumped overboard ship speaks out for first time since the incident

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• SEE IT: Video Shows Louisiana Teen Moments After Jumping from Cruise Ship, Search Called Off
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• MORE: Search suspended for 4 people missing after Alaskan charter boat sinks: Coast Guard
• Passenger who jumped off cruise ship identified as North Port man
• How does someone go overboard from a cruise ship?
• Cruise passenger who jumped to death from ship ID’d as Florida resident who argued with dad before leap
• Pilot explains what happens during turbulence and why passengers shouldn’t be afraid
• Authorities Identify Son Who Jumped Off Cruise Ship in Front of Family

He has been missing since he jumped overboard on April 4 in front of his brother and father on the cruise to Cuba and the Bahamas. "Sadly, after an exhaustive on-board search and a review of security camera video it was determined that he jumped," Lupoli said. "Shoreside authorities were notified, and the crew was advised to continue to Jacksonville. The Carnival Care Team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts are with them and the guest."

SEE IT: Video Shows Louisiana Teen Moments After Jumping from Cruise Ship, Search Called Off

The US Coast Guard called off its search for the North Port man a day earlier. There are a number of passengers who were onboard at the time of the tragedy who have recollected the events. Reports have stated he ‘jumped off’ Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas in front of his family.

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Here's everything you need to know about what happens in a "man overboard" situation on a cruise ship and how to make sure it doesn't happen to you. Some passengers told the New York Post that the man appeared to be intoxicated when he jumped off the ship. One of the ship’s passengers, Bryan Sims, explained how he’d been hanging out with the 20-year-old and his brother in the hot tub until about 3.30pm. Last month, a 30-year-old MSC crew member fell from a ship near Puerto Rico.

MORE: Search suspended for 4 people missing after Alaskan charter boat sinks: Coast Guard

The man jumped from the Carnival Cruise Line ship Mardi Gras just after midnight about 55 miles east of Port Canaveral, according to the Coast Guard and Carnival. Witnesses said the man’s father and brother watched as he jumped, seemingly on a spur of the moment decision, over the side, according to The New York Post. Officials said the ship was 57 miles from Great Inagua when the man jumped over the side of the ship, according to United Press International.

Sims told the Post that after leaving the hot tub, they encountered the passenger's father while approaching the elevators. After Sims had used the restroom and dried off, he bumped into the brothers and their father near the elevators. Francel Parker, dad of missing Levion Parker, told the Daily Sun that he believes his child — whom he called a master diver — is still alive in the waters off the Bahamas. It is hard to imagine what could have possibly led to the unnamed man leaping from the 15-deck ship. Sims hung out with Parker and his brother, Seth, 18, in the hot tub in the early hours of April before going their separate ways around 4 a.m.

According to reports, he allegedly jumped off an 18-story Liberty of the Seas boat around 4am in front of his younger brother and dad after getting into an argument with his father. CBS Miami reported the Mardi Gras is the largest ship ever built for the cruise line. A cruise turned into a nightmare for people aboard Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas when a young man jumped overboard shortly after 4 a.m. In a statement, Royal Caribbean said it immediately halted the ship and dispatched boats to search for Parker, but had no luck. The ship continued on its voyage back to Fort Lauderdale shortly after, leaving the search up to the Coast Guard. The Broward County Sheriff’s Office identified Parker on Wednesday, the New York Post and Daily Mail reported, just a day after the Coast Guard officially called off their search for the previously unidentified man.

Cruise passenger who jumped to death from ship ID’d as Florida resident who argued with dad before leap

The cruise ship has 18 decks and can accommodate up to 3,634 passengers. A 20-year-old man who was vacationing with his family on a cruise may have jumped overboard, The New York Post reported. At least 406 people on major cruise lines and ferries have gone overboard between 2000 and 2024, according to data collected by retired professor and cruise industry researcher Ross Klein. “There was a lot of yelling, and the crew was alerted immediately,” Deborah Morrison told The Post. According to a witness, crews made multiple unsuccessful attempts to locate Robbins as the boat, resembling a pirate ship, stayed in the area for several hours. Any time an overboard occurs, cruise lines offer assistance to friends, family or other travel companions traveling with the passenger in question.

Man jumps overboard Carnival cruise ship off Florida's coast, US Coast Guard says - FOX 35 Orlando

Man jumps overboard Carnival cruise ship off Florida's coast, US Coast Guard says.

Posted: Mon, 24 Jul 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

"The ship was moving pretty fast because it was during the night, and we were traveling a long distance," Sims recalled to the Post. "We were screaming and his dad was calling everyone to stop the ship… Lots of crew were up top and they started launching the smaller boats to search after we got turned around and back to the area I'm assuming." Parker’s father owns an air conditioning company and the family was cruising on the boat as guests of a wholesale company, according to the New York Post. The Coast Guard responded with two cutters and an airplane to search for the 43-year-old man. The Mardi Gras and the cruise ship Elation also participated in the search, said Coast Guard spokesman David Micallef.

Of the 212 overboard incidents mentioned earlier, 48 of those (roughly 28%) were rescued alive, CLIA reports. Chances of survival vary, depending on the circumstances of the fall. A passenger could be injured if they hit part of the ship as they fall. Should they survive the fall, water temperature also plays a significant role in how long a person can remain alive. You have a better chance of waiting out a rescue in the warm Caribbean sea than in chilly Alaskan waters. "We offer our most sincere condolences to Mr. Peale's family and friends."

The tragic news has been further confirmed by passengers, who said it appeared to be an ‘impulsive’ and ‘spur of the moment’ decision. Parker jumped off the 18-story Liberty of the Seas after reportedly getting into an argument with his father. As CrimeOnline previously reported, Cameron Robbins, who had just graduated from University Laboratory School (U-High), jumped off the boat as a dare on May 24. A video obtained by DailyMail showed Robbins splashing in the water near the boat before he vanished. Overboards are particularly grim when the ship is moving, as the vessel's speed and current mean that a person can be swept away quickly.

"His dad was fussing at him for being drunk, I guess. When we got to them, he said to his dad, 'I'll fix this right now.' And he jumped out the window in front of us all." The US Coast Guard has called off the search for the 20-year-old who is said to have jumped overboard from a cruise ship. Just two days before the MSC crew member disappeared, a 28-year-old Carnival cruise passenger fell from a ship near New Orleans. About 386 people were reported to have gone overboard on major cruise lines between 2000 and 2020, according to The Washington Post. A study by Cruise Lines International Association found that only 28% of those who fell overboard between 2009 and 2019 survived. Deborah Morrison, another passenger, told the Post that "there was a lot of yelling, and the crew was alerted immediately" after Levion jumped.

The US Coast Guard has stopped its search for a 30-year-old male passenger who went overboard from the Carnival Elation cruise ship on Sunday. Authorities say the man who recently disappeared from a Carnival cruise ship appeared to have jumped overboard. “There was a lot of yelling, and the crew was alerted immediately,” another passenger,  Deborah Morrison, told The Post.

Royal Caribbean said it “immediately” launched search boats to look for him with help from the US Coast Guard. “As we were walking from the hot tub back to the elevators, his dad and brother were walking towards us. His dad was fussing at him for being drunk, I guess,” Sims said of the moment before Parker jumped.