by Donald Wood
Last updated: 12:15 PM ET, Fri November 6, 2015
The United States Coast Guard is conducting a search for a man who went overboard while on a Royal Caribbean ship cruising through the Bahamas early Friday morning.
According to CBS Miami, Royal Caribbean has stated that a 35-year-old man from Brazil attempted to jump from the seventh deck of the MS Oasis of the Seas to a lifeboat below at around 1 a.m. local time.
The man ended up on a davit - the mechanism used to raise and lower lifeboats - and he managed to hold on to it for a few minutes while other passengers tried to help him, but he eventually lost his grip and fell into the water.
The ship stayed in the area to search for the man, dispatching two smaller ships to assist, but the United States Coast Guard is now officially in charge of conducting the search.
As a result of the incident, Royal Caribbean issued the following statement to CBS Miami:
"On Friday November 6, while Oasis of the Seas was at sea, 17 miles east of Turks and Caicos Islands, a 35 year old male guest from Brazil went overboard. He was spotted by Oasis of the Seas crew members intentionally going over the side of the ship. A Coast Guard helicopter was dispatched and is currently assisting us with the search. Our Care Team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time."
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