Death Confirmed Onboard Atlantis Events' Oasis of the Seas Gay Cruise

A death has been confirmed aboard Atlantis Events' 30th Anniversary Cruise on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas.

The Advocate has confirmed the death with Atlantis Events. While a representative said the death was "nothing out of the ordinary," they referred The Advocate to Royal Caribbean for comment on cause of death.

Last week, Atlantis Events set sail with a reported 4,700 travelers on the Oasis of the Seas. The trip was in part to celebrate the company's 30th anniversary. Given the ongoing global pandemic, a much-discussed New York Times article questioned whether the ship could keep its occupants safe. Organizers vowed to implement various social distancing methods but still sold the ship at almost full capacity.

During the cruise, multiple images have circulated on social media that show few to no signs of distancing.

Thursday night, Chris Wiggins, a freelance journalist who has written for USA Today, tweeted that he had confirmed a death of "at least one person" on the ship. He wrote that the cause of death is currently unclear. He said he confirmed this information with sources onboard the ship.

A mostly anonymous commenter wrote in response to his tweet that the death was from a "legit (non-drug related) medical issue."

This was not the first death of an Atlantis Events cruise. In January 2020 a technical crew member went overboard, and in January 2018 reality star Joel Taylor died of a suspected overdose. Cruise Law News, a blog that covers the cruise industry, reports at least five deaths in the past decade on Atlantis Events charters.