A crew member from the Regal Princess cruise ship went overboard early this morning, according to several crew members who wish to  remain anonymous.  The crew member was a Ukranian national and worked for Princess as a waiter. She has been identified by various first names.

A lifeboat from the ship recovered her body after a brief search. Several crew members sent a video taken of the lifeboat crew bringing the young woman from the water which we are not posting here.

The Regal Princess had sailed to Rotterdam as part of Princess Cruises’ efforts to finally repatriate crew members following the suspension of cruising approximately two months ago. Princess had arranged for air transportation for Ukranian crew members to fly from Amsterdam to Kiev; approximately 150 Ukranian crew members had been successfully flown back to the Ukraine via Ukranian International Ailines.

It was explained to me that the crew member in question was part of a second group of around 120 Ukrainian crew members who were scheduled to fly on a second airplane not associated with Ukrainian International Airlines.

The second air flight to Kiev was cancelled for unclear reasons. The woman was one of over a hundred crew members not permitted to fly home to the Ukraine. She reportedly was distraught and last seen crying on the ship.

This is the third crew member to die after cruising was suspended.  Yesterday, an assistant shore excursion manager died on the Carnival Breeze which is sailing to the U.S. from Bahamian waters. Eight days ago we reported that a Polish electrician on the Royal Caribbean Jewel of the Seas went overboard south of Greece. All of these cruise lines notified the families of these seafarers that their loved one had died.

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