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3 months ago
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A passenger on Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas has spoken of the bizarre chaos unleashed onboard after a man jumped from the ship on Sunday.
An unidentified man plummeted from world's largest cruise ship soon after it departed from Florida on the first night of a week-long trip to Honduras on Sunday.
Zachary Normand was on board the vessel and said travelers were aware of the missing passenger.
He was in the dining room eating dinner with some 300 others when the ship's captain made an announcement that the man had been found.
'Everyone in the dining room clapped and we're like "yeah",' Normand told the New York Post. 'We assumed that the guy was fine.'
A passenger on Icon of the Seas died after jumping overboard on Sunday. The ship was about 300 miles from the Port of Miami at the time
The man was in critical condition when brought back to the ship where he was declared dead but passengers cheered and celebrated after he was found, not realizing he had died
He says they were informed that a rescue mission was to take place and that the ship would be turning around.
But it was only later they found out the passenger had died.
To Normandin's surprise, he said the atmosphere onboard was entirely surreal as most people simply continued to enjoy their vacation as if nothing had happened.
'I don't think everyone knows about the guy dying. I think it's kind of purposely silenced,' Normandin added.
Normandin expressed surprise at how quickly normal activities resumed despite tragedy.
'I thought we were going straight back to Miami, I thought that was it. But, no, everything just kept on going, I think people we're just trying not to think about it, maybe, I don't know,' he said.
'It just seemed like more people would have been like "oh my gosh, what's going on," but no, people were just going about their day. It's just kind of dystopian.'
The unidentified man jumped over 80 feet into the sea from the enormous Icon of the Seas soon after it departed Miami on Sunday
The vessel was stopped for two hours while crews helped with the search and rescue mission
The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed that rescue boats were deployed, and the man was recovered from the water before being declared dead.
The unidentified man jumped over 80ft from the enormous Icon of the Seas soon after it departed from the Port of Miami on Sunday.
He had been on the first night of a seven-day journey around the Gulf of Mexico, with stops in Honduras and Costa Maya, Mexico.
The ship was about 300 miles from Miami when the man went overboard, according to CruiseHive.
The vessel was ultimately stopped for about two hours while crew helped with the search and rescue mission before the ship continued with its voyage
The 1,200-foot-long Icon of the Seas took its first voyage in January
The 1,200-foot-long Icon of the Seas took its first voyage in January.
It holds 7,600 passengers and 2,350 crew members.
A passenger who shared footage of the rescue crew said on X: 'On Icon of the Seas right now.
'Someone jumped/fell overboard and now a Search & Rescue is taking place. Low chance they'll be found. Hold your loved ones close, guys.'
The $2 billion ship runs nearly 1,200 feet (365 meters) from bow to stern and has 20 decks, 2,350 crew, 2,805 staterooms along with room for 7,600 passenger
Levion Parker, 20, was a high school footballer and popular sportsman from North Port, Florida
Apart from this, the ship also boasts a 55ft artificial waterfall, 40 dining venues and bars, seven swimming pools including a 40,000-gallon 'lake', 50 musicians and comedians as well as a 16-piece orchestra.
In April, 20-year-old Levion Parker jumped overboard from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in front of his horrified family.
The 18-story Liberty of the Seas was traveling between Cuba and the Bahamas' Grand Inagua Island when the shocking incident happened.
English (US)