A passenger went overboard from the Norwegian Jewel on Monday, October 20th. The Norwegian Cruise Line ship is currently on a 12-night transatlantic voyage from Barcelona to Miami. The incident occurred shortly after the ship departed from Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
The Norwegian Jewel changed course on October 20th, at 10:15 PM and began a 10-hour search and rescue operation. Multiple sources reported the captain alerted all crew members and passengers that there was a man overboard using the ship’s intercom at roughly 2:00 AM on October 21st.
Why the passengers were not immediately notified of the man overboard when the ship changed course is not clear.
Unfortunately, the passenger was not found during the search and rescue operation. The Norwegian Jewel then continued its voyage to Miami
A spokesperson from Norwegian Cruise Line told Miami’s Local 10 News, “We are deeply saddened to confirm that on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, we were notified that a guest was reported to have gone overboard while the ship was sailing from Ponta Delgada, Portugal to Miami.”
The spokesperson continued, “The appropriate authorities were immediately notified, and an extensive search and rescue operation with multiple vessels was conducted. The search was unfortunately unsuccessful, and the ship was released by authorities to continue its voyage. Our team is attending to the guest’s loved ones during this very difficult time, and our thoughts and prayers are with them.”
Information about the passenger’s identity or the events leading up to the passenger going overboard has not been released.
Going overboard from a cruise ship is extremely dangerous and a likely death sentence in open waters at night. The best chance of being rescued is if the ship has a man overboard (MOB) system which cruise lines, such as Norwegian Cruise Line, continually fail to install despite being required by the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act (CVSSA) of 2010.
This is the 427th person to go overboard since 2000, per cruise expert Dr. Ross Klein.
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Image credit: Norwegian Jewel – Kyle.died.rich – commons/wikipedia; search grid – Cruise Globe.