“We were in bed and we heard come over the PA system someone singing out “Oscar. Oscar. Oscar” and then that’s when everything started to happen,” she told the Today show.
The signal Oscar, Oscar, Oscar, denotes a passenger overboard, not that she or her husband knew.
“My husband got out of bed and he went outside on to our deck and started looking around. There were lights and, you know, the big lights shining on the ocean. And also there were a couple of boats out there in the water.”
They described the mood as “very sombre” following the search.
Quantum of the Seas is due in Honolulu after calling in at Tahiti in French Polynesia.
All ships in the area have been asked to aid in the search effort. The US Coast Guard and Navy are assisting in the operation.
A C130 Coastguard Hercules plane has been deployed to the area, but there is a limited window to conduct the search.
“The HC130 that was deployed for the search arrived on scene at nine o’clock[am]. They have a fuel endurance of about six hours,” Ryan Fisher, US Coast Guard petty officer second class told the Guardian Australia.
If the passenger is not found before the 3pm cutoff the search will have to be concluded and resumed the following day. Fisher said there were no Pacific Navy fleet assets on hand, so the search could not be extended past that point [1pm New Zealand time].
Ship positioning shows that the Quantum has since continued for Hawaii’s Kona Island.
Ship operator Royal Caribbean told the Herald that it was working with the Coast Guard to locate the missing guest.
“While on its trans-pacific sailing, a guest onboard Quantum of the Seas went overboard. The ship’s crew immediately launched a search and rescue operation and is working closely with local authorities.”
Quantum of the Seas joined the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines fleet in 2014 and can accommodate more than 4900 guests. It is scheduled to arrive in Hawaii on Friday.
