Man goes overboard from Princess Cruise ship prior to San Francisco arrival
Authorities have launched a search for a 72-year-old man believed to have gone overboard from a Princess Cruise ship ahead of its Monday arrival in San Francisco.
According to Princess Cruises, the incident happened with a passenger on the Ruby Princess early Monday morning prior to the ship's arrival in San Francisco at 6:50 a.m. The passenger's disappearance came near the end of a 5-day round trip voyage to Ensenada in Mexico. The ship departed from San Francisco on Nov 27.
"Princess Cruises is saddened to report that a 72-year-old American male is believed to have gone overboard earlier today ahead of the arrival of Ruby Princess into San Francisco," the statement released by the cruise line.
According to authorities, the U.S. Coast Guard was contacted at around noon and asked to conduct an air search for the man who went overboard. At least one plane has been deployed to conduct the search, but it needed to refuel and didn't relaunch until shortly before 3 p.m.
The Coast Guard said they planned to start their search 45 miles off of Monterey based on information from Princess Cruises.
Princess Cruise officials also said the matter is being investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with the full cooperation of the cruise line.
"CCTV footage has also been extensively reviewed and the ship was searched thoroughly several times without success. Having ruled out other possibilities, this is being treated as a man overboard incident," the statement said.
Princess Cruises has extended their "condolences to the family and friends of the guest who was traveling alone."
The ship's departure on a 16-day voyage to the Hawaiian Islands was delayed due to the incident, but the Ruby Princess is still expected to set sail Monday.
The Ruby Princess is the same ship that ran into the dock at Pier 27 last summer, causing damage to the hull that required repairs.
