A tourist has fallen overboard while travelling on a TUI-operated cruise ship just north of the Canary Islands.
Search operations are now underway in a desperate bid to find the passenger, said to be from the 'British Isles', after cruise ship staff sounded the Code Oscar alert sometime yesterday morning (27 November).
A spokesperson for the Spanish coastguard said: "It has been confirmed he went overboard and is aged 76. The search for him started yesterday and is continuing today. The search was relaunched at first light this morning."
As soon as the alarm was sounded, the captain of the 14-deck vessel, believed to be the Marella Explorer 2, slowed to a near stop before activating the necessary protocols, including alerting nearby boats and issuing its own search and rescue boats.
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A spokesperson for Marella Cruises told LADbible: "We are deeply saddened to confirm that a guest was seen entering the water while the ship was on passage to La Gomera. Our thoughts are with the individual and their loved ones during this difficult time.
"Our dedicated care team is supporting the family, providing assistance and comfort. We are working closely with local authorities and will continue to offer every possible support."
The ship was travelling from the Portuguese island of Madeira to the Canary Islands when the man went overboard, with a local news outlet reporting the cruise ship as being around 16 nautical miles from Punta de Teno, the westernmost point of Tenerife.
Spanish coastguards are believed to have deployed two of their specialist rescue vessels for the sea search, as they were joined by an emergency helicopter from above.
"There is no record at this time that the passenger has been located," local paper Voz Populi said, as per Metro.
"The operation remains open, and the authorities have not yet provided the identity, nationality or circumstances of the fall, which is customary in initial investigations of incidents on cruise ships."
The cruise ship is now reported to be in Santa Cruz, Tenerife's capital, where the ship was heading at the time of the incident.
The Canarian Flavours tour left Tenerife on 21 November, heading to Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Madeira and La Gomera, before heading back to Tenerife.
What happens when a person goes overboard on a cruise ship?
When the tragic event of a person going overboard on a cruise ship takes place, the Code Oscar alarm will be sounded and the crew will jump into action.
Whoever sounds the alarm will give crucial details over the tannoy, and officials in the bridge will log the location where they received the report, before stopping the ship as soon as they can.
Once the location is logged, the cruise ship will move as fast as it can to turn around and head back to the location it was when the person fell.
In this time, nearby ships will also have been given the coordinates and move to the area to lend assistance.
Smaller boats on the side of the cruise ship will be lowered into the ocean to try and find the individual while crew members try and locate them from the top deck.
LADbible has contacted TUI for comment.
Topics: News, Cruise Ship, Travel
Emma Rosemurgey