TUI ‘deeply saddened’ as seek for lacking British cruise passenger continues
A British pensioner is missing from TUI’s Marella Voyager cruise ship after she was last seen on Monday, with staff raising the alarm a day later when they realised her bed had not been slept in.
Passengers were told to assemble at muster stations(Image: Unknown)
Tui has released a statement following a desperate search for a missing British pensioner who disappeared from one of its cruise ships. There are fears the 72 year old went overboard while the vessel was making its way across the Atlantic.
She was last spotted on Monday, with crew members raising the alarm the following day upon discovering her bed had not been slept in. The Marella Voyager’s 2,000 passengers were swiftly instructed to gather at muster stations.
This triggered a thorough search of the 14-deck, 956-cabin ocean liner, though she has yet to be found.
Tui has since released a fresh statement confirming it is ‘deeply saddened’ by the incident. A spokesperson said: “We’re deeply saddened to confirm that a guest was reported missing on board Marella Voyager while the ship was crossing the Atlantic.
“As soon as the alarm was raised, the crew carried out a full search of the ship and we contacted the relevant authorities straight away. Our thoughts are with the guest’s loved ones at this very difficult time.”
Marella Voyager is a TUI-operated cruise ship, which carries 2,000 passengers and 800 crew
“We’re supporting the authorities with their enquiries, and out of respect for the guest and their family, we won’t be commenting further at this stage.”
The vessel, which had departed from Malaga in Spain bound for the Caribbean, is believed to have covered 550 miles between when the passenger was last seen and when she was reported missing. The US Coastguard advised the captain to press on with the planned route rather than doubling back to search for the elderly woman.
The journey had been battered by dreadful weather earlier on, though it’s not believed poor conditions contributed to the elderly woman’s disappearance. One passenger described the wind and rain: “[I’ve] never experienced rough seas like this in all the 20 years of cruising. “We were on deck 11 sitting inside as it was pouring down.
Passengers aboard Marella Voyager were ordered to muster stations last night while the captain declared a ‘Code X-Ray’, the signal used when a person is suspected of going in water
We heard this huge bang as if we had hit something. The ship started to go onto its side and we could see the water through the windows.”
The woman has not been identified, but the Foreign Office confirmed she is British. A spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British National reported missing on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean and we are in touch with the relevant authorities. “.
The Foreign Office has been contacted for comment.
