The Coast Guard said today it has suspended the search for a woman who jumped off a cruise ship Wednesday as it was heading for the Big Island.
The search covering more than 10,000 square miles was centered about 650 miles northeast of Hilo.
It was conducted by two Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules aircraft from Air Station Barber’s Point on Oahu with the assistance of a Navy P-3 Orion airplane from Marine Corps Base Kaneohe. The commercial tug Moku Pahu also assisted in the effort, the Coast Guard said.
“Suspending a search is never an easy decision to make,” said Lt. Cmdr. Peter Zauner, command duty officer of the Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center.
“It’s done with much deliberation and after a concerted effort to ensure that the Coast Guard has adequately searched all probable locations for survivors,” Zauner said. “We offer our thoughts and prayers to the family and loved ones.”
The crew of the Grand Princess reported a woman overboard at 1 p.m. Wednesday. A spokeswoman for Princess Cruises later reported that the 54-year-old woman had jumped intentionally.
The crew of the ship turned the vessel around to search for the woman.
The spokeswoman said the woman was a US citizen. Her name has not been released.
The ship was three days into a round-trip cruise from San Francisco to Hilo. According to the state Department of Transportation, it was to arrive Sunday in Hilo, its only scheduled Hawaii port of call for its current trip.
The Grand Princess is one of the world’s largest ocean liners and is capable of carrying up to 3,168 passengers with a crew of more than 1,100.
The ship launched in 1998 is 951 feet long and 191 feet tall. Its 17 decks hold 1,300 cabins.
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