Coast Guard HC-144 file photo
NEW ORLEANS — The Coast Guard suspended its search at 5:37 p.m. Thursday for a missing cruise ship passenger 150 miles offshore Southwest Pass, Louisiana.
Rescue crews searched more than 2,514 square nautical miles for a combined search time of approximately 14 hours.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector New Orleans received a call at approximately 3 p.m., Wednesday reporting a passenger on the cruise ship Carnival Valor had fallen overboard. The watchstanders directed the launch of rescue crews to begin searching.
“The decision to suspend a search-and-rescue case is never one we come to lightly,” said Chief Warrant Officer Tricia Eldredge, Command Duty Officer at Sector New Orleans. “We offer our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time.”
Involved in the search were:
- Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile HC-144A Ocean Sentry aircrew
- Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater MH-60T Jayhawk aircrew
- Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater HC-130H Hercules aircrew
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