Cruise Ship Passenger Reported Overboard Near Bahamas
The woman has been identified as 32-year-old Rina Patel.
— -- The Coast Guard is searching for a 32-year-old woman who reportedly fell overboard from a cruise ship near the Bahamas.
Around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, crew members on the Carnival Ecstasy said a woman "was reportedly seen falling overboard," according to the Coast Guard. A Carnival representative said the ship guest "was witnessed jumping overboard."
The woman has been identified as Rina Patel of Interlaken, New York, authorities said. She was wearing a white dress with a pink floral pattern, according to the Coast Guard.
The ship was about 15 miles off the coast of Grand Bahama Island when Patel was reported missing. Coast Guard air and boat crews have launched a search.
The ship was en route from Nassau, Bahamas, to Charleston, South Carolina. The ship is expected to arrive in Charleston, where it is based, on Thursday, according to the Coast Guard and Carnival. It departed from Charleston on Saturday.
Around 2:45 a.m. on Wednesday, a call came over the ship's intercom that repeated "Man overboard" four times, passenger Shannon Parks told ABC News via email. When she went up to the 11th deck to see what was happening, spotlights were being shined onto the water, and the ship had stopped, she said. A small rescue boat with a crew of five was lowered into the water, and the crew searched the area for a "long time," she recalled. A helicopter could be heard flying back and forth just before daybreak, and later a U.S. Coast Guard plane was doing the same, she said.
Parks described the crew as "organized" during the search and added that she was "impressed" with the way Carnival handled the situation.
A Carnival representative said in a statement, "The company's CareTeam is providing assistance and support to the missing guest's family on board, and our thoughts and prayers are with her and family and loved ones during this difficult time."