Korean woman, 63, Missing from Mediterranean Norwegian Cruise Ship, 8 Jun 2019

[TeaTime]

She did not 'fall' overboard. She either jumped or was pushed/thrown over the railings.

 

[whitelilac]

What on earth? At first I thought, another passenger on the same day? wth
Does the original American teenager even exist?

Poor woman.
With 4 ft high railings, I also find it difficult to believe a person falls off accidentally.

 

[Trident]

Teen to elderly Korean woman. Did they even get the pink pajamas right?

I had a chance to cruise with my son and grandson many years ago. I refused, had read about too many "oddities". IMO things haven't got a lot better. Will stay on dry land out of third-world countries. I also won't go to Chicago, Detroit, Philly, or Camden any time soon.

 

[ilovechili]

She did not 'fall' overboard. She either jumped or was pushed/thrown over the railings.

I agree. She was pushed or dropped. Or jumped intentionally. Or was doing something dangerous like sitting on the rail, etc. (which I highly doubt and consider the least likely and do not buy it).

 

[indicolite22]

Teen to elderly Korean woman. Did they even get the pink pajamas right?

In the absence of official statements the press sometimes publishes unverified information (in this case coming from other passengers). The pink pajamas reportedly came from instructions to passengers, so they knew what to look for in the water.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

She did not 'fall' overboard. She either jumped or was pushed/thrown over the railings.

I've been on at least 30 cruises, different lines, ships of different sizes, varying itineraries, etc. There is no way that a passenger falls overboard without some type of "thrust". Even sitting on a stateroom balcony railing for a photo and falling backwards wouldn't put the passenger into the water. Something on a deck below would likely prevent the fall. Lifeboats flank both sides of cruise ships and protrude outward above the water so they can be lowered safely and quickly if necessary. One might be able to "fall" from an exterior aft (rear) deck of a ship, but that would be something that's deliberate rather than accidental (i.e. Kate Winslet dangling over aft deck in Titanic; DiCaprio says he'll jump in to rescue her).

 

[Laughing]

According to our resident cruise veterans, the balcony railings are about 4" high.

Yeah I don't like to cite Wikipedia, but this looks believable:

List of average human height worldwide - Wikipedia

The average South Korean woman is 5'2".

This was no accident.

 

[ilovechili]

I've been on at least 30 cruises, different lines, ships of different sizes, varying itineraries, etc. There is no way that a passenger falls overboard without some type of "thrust". Even sitting on a stateroom balcony railing for a photo and falling backwards wouldn't put the passenger into the water. Something on a deck below would likely prevent the fall. Lifeboats flank both sides of cruise ships and protrude outward above the water so they can be lowered safely and quickly if necessary. One might be able to "fall" from an exterior aft (rear) deck of a ship, but that would be something that's deliberate rather than accidental (i.e. Kate Winslet dangling over aft deck in Titanic; DiCaprio says he'll jump in to rescue her).

I agree. I think we are looking at murder or suicide here.

When I thought it was an 18 year old, I left the options open because I have friends who have regaled me with stories of how their sons upon trips will go from one balcony to another like six or even more floors up... I am talking about balconies that do not connect and are walled in between where yes, you are out there above ground, dangling by a hand, etc. to do so. The mom told me how much it scares her, the dad laughed. So I allowed for perhaps an 18 year old doing something like that, climbing down or out or to another room to avoid her parents and meet someone for instance... And like you said, even probably in a case like that, it takes getting a bit farther out from the ship balcony to hit the water...

Now with information that this was a 63 year old woman, those thoughts are entirely out the window... They were also my least likely.

My guess is most of us are thinking there are but two possibilities, murder or suicide.

Jmo.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Search called off for cruise ship passenger who went overboard near Spain

The passenger has been identified as an adult Korean woman, and the cruise line says "sadly, the guest has not been found."

 

[indicolite22]

Closeups of this ship's exterior, deck plans, etc.:
Norwegian Epic Pictures

I think there are quite a few balconies without a lower deck to catch your fall.

 

[lonetraveler]

How do they know she went overboard?

There are video cameras covering the ship that alarm when someone goes overboard. Don't know why the alarm did not sound but I do know that Epic is totally updated. I cruised on Epic in March of this year. No one can accidentally fall overboard from the balcony unless they intended to go over or someone threw them over. The balcony rail goes to mid chest on me, I'm 5'2". There is simply no way someone can accidentally fall overboard. They would have to climb up and jump or stand on chair and jump over.

 

[lonetraveler]

How high are the railings on the balcony? How would one merely fall in?

You can't fall in. Railings are mid chest on me, I'm 5'2".

 

[Gardener1850]

Closeups of this ship's exterior, deck plans, etc.:
Norwegian Epic Pictures

I think there are quite a few balconies without a lower deck to catch your fall.

Great source of photos. This one has quite a few people standing on balconies so we can see the relative height (click photo to enlarge):

Norwegian Epic Pictures

 

[lonetraveler]

The ABC article states that she went to the balcony at 1am to get some fresh air. Apparently she stayed there long enough that her husband fell asleep. Can we assume that she returned to bed? Did she go out again at 5am and fell over?
Wow, story just keeps on changing. Now, she is with her husband, not her parents as first reported, and maybe went out on the balcony to get fresh air while her husband slept and was seen on CCTV going overboard around 5am. Scratching my head here.
A search is on in the Mediterranean for a woman who fell off a cruise ship.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Closeups of this ship's exterior, deck plans, etc.:
Norwegian Epic Pictures

I think there are quite a few balconies without a lower deck to catch your fall.

That vessel doesn't seem to have tiered decks like most ships I've sailed on. Still, a person would need to intentionally climb onto balcony furniture or the railing to "fall" overboard into the water below or be pushed over the railing.

 

[lonetraveler]

That vessel doesn't seem to have tiered decks like most ships I've sailed on. Still, a person would need to intentionally climb onto balcony furniture or the railing to "fall" overboard into the water below or be pushed over the railing.

Husband's story is that he was sleeping...........we have all heard this before.....JMO

 

[Hatfield]

Great source of photos. This one has quite a few people standing on balconies so we can see the relative height (click photo to enlarge):

Norwegian Epic Pictures

Here is a question for anyone that has been on a cruise and had a balcony with average rail height.

Can this ever happen?

Lets say a person was just leaning against the rail but the weather and waves were really large. Like when in an airplane with bad turbulance and there is a sudden drop in altitude and the plane drops severely and you feel your stomach want to come up out of your throat,
Does the same thing ever happen on a cruise boat where maybe the edge of the ship hit a big wave and the ship dropped severely enough to where her weight lifted her center of balance enough to go up and over the rail?

Is something like that even possible?

Ive never been on a cruise and dont know how bad the waves and movement of the ship can get in bad windy weather.

 

[SpanishMossAntiques]

These scenarios are the worst! (well, this is WS, and plenty is the worst)

Seems these overboard disappearances are seldom accidents. How expansive was their cabin if her absence wasn't noticed until the next morning??

When I lived in Key West I saw many people fall overboard from boats or from a dock/pier. I also saw a number of people wind up driving their car completely into the water while trying to launch/recover their boat... Nearly all of these were due to the subject being intoxicated - either from alcohol, drugs, or both. Anyone who's taken a cruise knows how crazy they can be: The last one I went on it seemed like 98% of everyone aboard was drunk - very, very dunk. People were vomiting everywhere, people were passed out in the hallways, casino, on the deck, etc.. I saw more people leaning far over the rails, just begging to go overboard. Anyway, are there murders on-board cruise ships? Sure - but not that many. Most who go overboard are suicides or else accidental.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

If there was bad weather, or it was known beforehand that there would be rough seas overnight, passengers most likely would have been notified either through ship-wide announcement from the Captain or a letter delivered to all passenger staterooms. Warning signs would have been posted throughout the ship, and some open areas of the ship would have been blocked with roping and/or doors to exterior areas of ship would be locked so passengers can't access dangerous parts of the vessel.

DH and I have been on ships during storms that caused high waves and/or caused the ship to "list" - lean to the right or left. Passengers are encouraged to stay indoors, pools and exterior deck areas are off-limits until the storm ceases. Staff do everything possible to keep passengers safe, but there are always going to be folks who don't heed sound advice. By far, the worst storm ever was our return trip from a Canada/New England cruise in the wake of one of the late summer (September) hurricanes several years ago. Our last port of call was St. John, Newfoundland after which our final day was sailing back to New York City. As we left St. John @ 6:00PM, Captain announced that we were likely to encounter rough seas throughout the evening and overnight. Production shows were cancelled due to safety of performers, and passengers were cautioned to use handrails when moving about the ship, avoid outside decks/promenade, or remain in your stateroom if necessary for your safety. By mid-morning, the storm had cleared and the rest of the trip was relatively smooth. It was not fun

 

[ilovechili]

Closeups of this ship's exterior, deck plans, etc.:
Norwegian Epic Pictures

I think there are quite a few balconies without a lower deck to catch your fall.

These are great pictures and gives a really good idea when looking at several of them that there are indeed areas you would not hit anything. Too bad we do not know the location of the room and where exactly it was on the ship, that I am aware of anyhow.