Search Continues for Missing Carnival Cruise Passenger in Florida Waters

Coast Guard officials are searching Florida waters after a passenger disappeared from a Carnival Cruise ship shortly before it returned to Port Miami this week, according to statements given by authorities to media outlets. The case involves a Missing Carnival Cruise Passenger who vanished right before docking.

The Miami-Dade Police Department identified the missing man as 26-year-old Kevin McGrath, as reported by an unnamed department spokesperson to Insider. The spokesperson said McGrath was last seen by his brother around 2 a.m. on Monday morning in his cabin.

McGrath was supposed to meet his family for breakfast before the ship docked but never showed up for the meal, police said. He was reported missing around 7 a.m. on Monday, according to a Carnival spokesperson who spoke to Insider.

The report came as passengers began disembarking in Port Miami after the four-day trip to the Bahamas, Carnival confirmed. The cruise line said crew members conducted an “extensive” onboard search but did not find McGrath. Miami-Dade police then boarded the ship to investigate, authorities stated.

Police said McGrath did not appear on any of the ship’s surveillance systems, including security cameras and U.S. Customs and Border Protection screening during disembarkation. Authorities told media outlets the footage does not indicate McGrath went overboard.

A U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson informed media that air and surface crews continue to actively search for McGrath near Port Miami and the South Florida coast.

According to police statements, the Carnival Conquest was eventually cleared to sail again and is currently in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, heading to the Bahamas based on cruise tracking data.

Also Read – What Makes Falling Overboard from a Cruise Ship So Deadly?

The disappearance comes a week after a 19-year-old went overboard from Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas cruise ship, the largest operational cruise ship in the world. Authorities have conducted an extensive search but the student has not been found.

A 2020 study from Cruise Lines International Association found an average of 19 people annually fall overboard cruise ships. At least six have gone overboard in the last three months, renewing debate over whether cruise lines should be required to install man-overboard detection systems.