3 months ago
14
The
FBI
is looking into the death of a 12-year-old boy who fell from a balcony to a lower deck on a
Royal Caribbean
ship returning to Galveston,
Texas
. The incident took place Saturday night on the 'Harmony of the Seas' on the last night of a seven-day western
Caribbean
cruise that had visited Honduras and Mexico.
The exact details of the boy's death remain unclear.
Reports say the boy fell from a balcony inside the ship and landed in the
Central Park
area, which has trees, plants, restaurants, and shops.
The FBI, said to be "the primary federal agency authorised to investigate potential crimes on the high seas," is in coordination with the US Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection in the ongoing investigation, as per
Washington Post
reports.
Royal Caribbean also released limited information. “We are deeply saddened to confirm the death of one of our guests,” the company said in a statement. “Our Care Team is providing support and assistance to the guest’s family during this difficult time. For the privacy of the guest and their family, we have no additional details to share.”
Harmony of the Seas is one of the largest cruise ships in the world. It has 18 decks and can hold 6,687 guests in 2,747 rooms. The ship has different sections, including a boardwalk, promenade, pool and sports area, youth area, and Central Park, where the boy fell.
In 2019, a 16-year-old passenger died on the same ship while trying to move between balconies. Royal Caribbean called that incident a "tragic accident."
In other mishaps involving the Royal Caribbean, a passenger on 'Explorer of the Seas' cruise went overboard last month while the ship was near Croatia. Despite an extensive search lasting nearly 40 hours, the British man was not found.
In a separate incident in May, another passenger lost his life after jumping overboard from Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas, the company's largest cruise ship, shortly after it departed from a Florida port. The man was retrieved from the water and brought back on board, but later succumbed to his injuries.
