SAN JUAN — The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for a crew member who went overboard from the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Harmony of the Seas some 267 miles (429 kilometers) off Puerto Rico.
A Coast Guard news release said they ended the search Thursday afternoon, two days after 20-year-old Arron Hough of the United Kingdom jumped overboard on Christmas Day.
“We’ve been in contact with members of Mr. Hough’s family throughout our search efforts and know this is a very difficult and painful time for them,” said Cmdr. Christopher Douglas, Coast Guard Sector San Juan chief of response. “Suspending a search is one of the most difficult decisions we have to make as first responders, and it is never made lightly.”
Coast Guard rescue crews were composed of HC-130 Hercules airplanes stationed in Clearwater, HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplanes from Miami and the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Resolute, based in St. Petersburg.
The search covered about 3,707 square miles (9601 square kilometers).
Harmony of the Seas sails from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale.
Coast Guard Searching For Cruise Ship Entertainer Who Went Overboard By San Juan