MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for a woman who fell off a cruise ship Thursday night off the coast of Cuba.
Petty Officer 1st Class Stephen Lehmann said the Coast Guard received a report from the crew of the Norwegian Pearl about 7 p.m. that a woman had fallen from the 11th deck of the ship about 22 miles off Cuba's coast. She was identified by the Coast Guard as Kaylyn Rose Sommer, 24, of Charleston, South Carolina.
However, a statement from Norwegian Cruise Line said the woman was seen "intentionally going overboard" while the ship was in the Yucatan Channel.
"There are a lot of unknowns this early on," Lt. Cmdr. Gabe Somma told Local 10 News on Friday. "We do know that she was not wearing a life jacket."
Crew members immediately deployed three rescue boats and notified the Coast Guard, the cruise line said.
The Norwegian Pearl was hosting a five-day celebration known as the "Mad Decent Boat Party" from Miami to Cozumel, Mexico.
This is the second time in less than a week that a passenger has fallen overboard on a South Florida cruise ship. Last Friday, Bernardo Elbaz, also known as Bernardo Teixiera Garcia, fell off the Oasis of the Seas cruise ship. His husband said Royal Caribbean security guards caused Elbaz to fall, but the cruise line and Broward Sheriff's Office detectives said he jumped.
The Coast Guard has searched more than 600 nautical square miles for Sommer since Thursday night.
Follow Local 10 News on Twitter @WPLGLocal10