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Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas -- chartered by Atlantis Events -- was docked in Puerto Rico when the man jumped. The Coast Guard has recovered the body.Â
The U.S. Coast Guard has recovered the body of an unidentified 46-year-old Florida man who died after jumping 10 stories from Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas during an Atlantis Events charter.
The LGBTQ travel company chartered the ship for a week-long cruise from Fort Lauderdale to San Juan, Puerto Rico.
According to CBS News reporter David Begnaud, who's been tweeting updates, surveillance video shows a "clean jump" by the man, who dropped 177 feet into the water while the ship was docked just off Puerto Rico's north shore in San Juan Bay.
\u201cUPDATE: @USCG says surveillance video shows "a clean jump" by a 46yo man from Naples, FL., who dropped 177 feet, from the 10 story deck of @RoyalCarribean's 'Oasis of the Seas', last night, while the ship was docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico. \nDivers recovered the mans body.\u201d— David Begnaud (@David Begnaud) 1579777327
\u201cBREAKING: Roll call underway aboard @RoyalCarribean's Oasis of the Seas that's docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to identify the passenger who fell from the 10th floor deck, 4hrs ago. Divers are searching. Passengers are on an Altantis cruise; it caters to the Lgbtq+ community\u201d— David Begnaud (@David Begnaud) 1579749805
Multiple reports have stated that soon after the man jumped overboard, crew members collected guests at muster stations -- places on a ship where passengers assemble during emergencies -- to conduct a roll call in an effort to identify the man.
"Atlantis has been doing these cruises for decades and is so professional and welcoming," fellow passenger Eric Patton, who is from Tennessee, told Nashville's Tennessean. "I know that their hearts have to be broken over all this. They've handled this so professionally and with such kindness to the passengers. It really feels like a brotherhood on here. It's just so sad this happened."
\u201cUpdate from the Oasis of the Seas: we\u2019re all mustering on paper to see if we can find the missing person\u201d— Eric from TN (@Eric from TN) 1579749468
Unfortunately, this is not the only time a passenger died during an Atlantis Events cruise.
In 2012, a 30-year-old British male passenger aboard the Allure of the Seas went over the railing from his stateroom. The ship was sailing from Florida to Cozumel, Mexico. According to Cruise Law News, he may have left a suicide note before jumping into the water.
As previously reported, in 2009 GLAAD board member Spencer Yu, a Los Angeles attorney, died of a heart attack allegedly due to drug use while on Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas. The ship was chartered by Atlantis for a seven-day trip along the Mexican Riviera.
In 2010, a 37-year-old passenger aboard the Liberty of the Seas, chartered by Atlantis to the Cayman Islands, also died. At the time, local police issued a statement that there appeared to be "no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death."
If you are a trans or gender-nonconforming person considering suicide, Trans Lifeline can be reached at (877) 565-8860. LGBTQ youth (ages 24 and younger) can reach the Trevor Project Lifeline at (866) 488-7386. You can also access chat services at TheTrevorProject.org/Help or text START to 678678. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at (800) 273-8255 can be reached 24 hours a day by people of all ages and identities.
