Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
The search has been halted for the elderly British man that fell from a cruise ship only for adults, near the Canary Islands. He is still unaccounted for.
On Thursday morning, the alarm was sounded after a 76-year-old tourist, who has not been named, plunged into Atlantic Ocean from the Marella Explorer 2 – a 14 deck vessel operated by British tour operator TUI.
The Spanish Coastguard announced Monday that the search and rescue effort to locate the man has been suspended.
A spokesperson for the Coastguard stated that “there is no specific mobilization of resources as part of an intensive search”, which we call it.
“The active searches involving the resources which were in place on Friday and Thursday have been scaled back,” he said.
At the time of the accident, the 248-metre long ship was traveling from the Canary Islands towards Madeira.
The man’s body is believed to have been thrown into the Atlantic Ocean about 16 miles north of Tenerife.
The captain of the vessel immediately responded to the alert by slowing the ship down until it was at a standstill before docking in the port Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Crews began reviewing footage, launching markers buoys and performing circular search maneuvers in a desperate effort to find the missing person.
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A maritime and air search was conducted, including the use of helicopters, aircraft, and specialist rescue vessels. However, search efforts were unsuccessful.
Boats in the area have been told to remain ‘on the lookout’ for any sign of the elderly man.
In a statement, Marella Cruises said they were ‘deeply saddened’ by the incident.
The statement read: “Our thoughts and prayers are with you, the victim and your loved ones at this difficult time.”
Our dedicated team of care providers is providing comfort and assistance to the family.
We will continue to provide all the support we can.
The luxury Malta flagged ship left Tenerife, Spain on November 21, for a 7-day trip that included stops in Gran Canaria and Lanzarote. It also made stops in Fuerteventura (Fuerteventura), Madeira, La Gomera, and Madeira.
The Guardia Civil confirmed that the incident is not being investigated as a crime.
They said: “The investigations are continuing but nothing indicates that this was a violent death, or that anyone else interfered in what happened.”
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