Man Goes Overboard On Cruise Ship Off FL's East Coast: Coast Guard

JACKSONVILLE, FL — Crews are searching for a 35-year-old man who went overboard Monday while traveling Carnival Magic cruise ship, U.S. Coast Guard Southeast shared on social media.

He went overboard 186 miles east of Jacksonville, the agency said. The Coast Guard is searching for him using air and water assets.

A woman on the cruise, Jennilyn Michelle Blosser, identified the man as her fiancée, Ronnie Lee Peale Jr., according to WTKR.

"He was the life of the party. It just hurts too much to even type, let alone talk about it," she said. "He loved the cruise life, being able to drink, gamble and socialize put him in his happy place. This was his first cruise and I’m sure he would have been willing to do one monthly."

The ship was on a return trip from the Bahamas to Norfolk, Virginia, where it departed from, reports said.

Carnival told Insider said that security camera footage shows that the victim fell overboard just after 4 a.m.

"He leaned over the railing of his stateroom balcony and dropped into the water," the cruise line said.

Blosser told Wavy.com, “I just woke up at 11:30 in the morning and he wasn’t there so I spent my whole day trying to find him. I called his mom to see if he had called his mom because usually he’s always talking to his mom and she had not heard from him and that’s when we started to get customer service involved."

The Coast Guard released the ship from search-and-rescue efforts and advised the captain to continue its trip to Virginia, where it was expected to arrive Tuesday, Carnival said, according to reports. "The Carnival Care Team is providing support to the guest's companion and traveling party who are on board."