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

Table Of Content

• Coast Guard searching for man who jumped from cruise ship in front of his family
• MORE: US teen missing after going overboard on sunset cruise in the Bahamas
• Levion Parker jumped from the cruise ship last week
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• Levion Parker, 20, jumped from Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas ship on April 4
• Spring breakers go wild in chaotic footage of booze-soaked and topless brawls
• MORE: Search suspended for 4 people missing after Alaskan charter boat sinks: Coast Guard

Some passengers told the New York Post that the man appeared to be intoxicated when he jumped off the ship. 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. “I think it kind of blows the norm, the normalcy, out of the water here, and really just shows the will to live is something that you need to account for in every search-and-rescue case,” he told CNN. The missing 28-year-old man, who hasn’t been identified, was with his sister at the Carnival Valor’s bar at 11 p.m. Wednesday when he took a bathroom break and never came back, the outlet reported.

Coast Guard searching for man who jumped from cruise ship in front of his family

After a man jumped off a cruise ship into the Bahama Ocean, his father has said he believes he is still alive in the sea. Crew members said they immediately reported it to local authorities, which began a search and rescue mission, according to the ship's operator, Royal Caribbean Cruises. 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. There were reports of an argument before Levion jumped, according to the Sun, but his father told the outlet that he had not been arguing with his son beforehand. Levion's father said his son had alcohol on the ship but that it was not a suicide, the Sun reported.

MORE: US teen missing after going overboard on sunset cruise in the Bahamas

The man jumped from the Carnival Cruise Lines ship Mardi Gras just after midnight about 55 miles (89 kilometers) east of Port Canaveral, according to the Coast Guard and Carnival. On Facebook, Mason said she and her family are in need of prayers as they await answers. “We are holding on to hope and prayer that he will be found safe,” she wrote. The Liberty of the Seas departed from South Florida and was 57 miles from Great Inagua in The Bahamas when the passenger went overboard.

Search and rescue launched after man, 20, 'jumped off' cruise ship in front of family - UNILAD

Search and rescue launched after man, 20, 'jumped off' cruise ship in front of family.

Posted: Fri, 05 Apr 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Levion Parker jumped from the cruise ship last week

If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org. Royal Caribbean said it “immediately” launched search boats to look for him with help from the US Coast Guard. 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. The release of his identity comes shortly after the Coast Guard called off its search for Parker.

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"His dad was fussing at him for being drunk, I guess," Bryan Sims told the outlet. "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." "As soon as he went off the side, I prayed over him," the dad told the outlet.

The sibling didn’t report her brother gone until noon the next day,  prompting the Cozumel, Mexico-bound ship to retrace its sailing path toward New Orleans Thursday, Carnival spokesperson Matt Lupoli told the outlet. 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. The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for a 41-year-old man who went overboard on a cruise ship just before Christmas, it said Monday. Deborah Morrison, another passenger, told the Post that "there was a lot of yelling, and the crew was alerted immediately" after Levion jumped. "The ship's crew immediately launched a search and rescue effort alongside the US Coast Guard, who has taken over the search," the Royal Caribbean spokesperson said. Deborah Morrison, another passenger on board the cruise, told the Post that "there was a lot of yelling and that the crew was alerted immediately."

Spring breakers go wild in chaotic footage of booze-soaked and topless brawls

The Vision of the Seas was 127 miles east of Charleston, South Carolina, on Saturday night when the incident occurred, the Coast Guard posted on X. "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." The Coast Guard has since narrowed its search area roughly 30 miles southwest of the Southwest Pass. "I just want answers, and I'm holding out for hope," Barnett's grandmother Dirlean Tate Mason told NBC News in a story published on Tuesday.

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

"We have informed the U.S. Coast Guard and are providing assistance to the guest’s family that was traveling with him," they added. In a statement to The Post, Royal Caribbean said its crew immediately sprang into action following the incident. According to onlookers, his father and brother watched helplessly as he leaped over the side. The Liberty of the Seas was on a four-day cruise that departed from Port Everglades on Monday and returned Friday morning, according to cruise-tracking website CruiseMapper. Another passenger told the Post his family appeared "horrified" by what had happened.

Coast Guard suspends search for man who went overboard on cruise ship

“The early morning was definitely somber as so many people came out of their cabins to stare at the sea, hoping to be able to aid in finding the person,” said Amy Phelps Fouse, a passenger on the ship. “There was a lot of yelling, and the crew was alerted immediately,” another passenger,  Deborah Morrison, told The Post. WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for a 20-year-old man who passengers claim jumped off a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that departed from South Florida. “As we were walking from the hot tub back to the elevators, his dad and brother were walking towards us. The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for a 20-year-old man who jumped from the deck of a Royal Caribbean cruise in front of his father and brother Thursday morning off the Bahamas.

In 2023, about 31 million passengers traveled on a cruise, and at least 10 people went overboard, with two of them surviving, Business Insider reported. 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. Fellow passengers recalled how there had been ‘a lot of yelling’ as the crew were alerted to the ‘surreal’ incident.

The man was reported missing by his travel companion late Sunday afternoon after he was not seen all day. A total of 212 overboard incidents were reported on cruise ships from 2009 to 2019, according to a report commissioned by the industry-trade group Cruise Lines International Association. “The ship’s crew immediately launched a search and rescue effort alongside the US Coast Guard, who has taken over the search,” the statement reads. "As we were walking from the hot tub back to the elevators, his dad and brother were walking towards us," passenger Bryan Sims told the Post. "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."

Reports have stated he ‘jumped off’ Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas in front of his family. BSO's Homicide and Crime Scene units have responded to Port Everglades to investigate, while the U.S. Coast has been notified and is currently searching the sea for the crew member.