A 20-year-old who went missing after jumping from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in front of his family has been identified after his heartbroken father spoke out.
As previously reported, the incident took place on board a Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas ship at around 4:00AM on April 4 as it traveled between Cuba and the Bahamas’ Grand Inagua Island.
As per the New York Post, the previously unnamed 20-year-old had gotten into an argument with his father and then leaped out of the window into the sea below.
Bryan Sims, who was a witness to the events, said: “As we were walking from the hot tub back to the elevators, his dad and brother were walking towards us. His dad was fussing at him for being drunk, I guess.”
The man had been on board a Royal Caribbean cruise when he made the snap decision to jump out of a window. Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty
“When we got to them, he said to his dad, ‘I’ll fix this right now.’ And he jumped out the window in front of us all,” Sims said.
Another passenger, Deborah Morrison, said: “His family was horrified. Just beside themselves. I can’t even begin to imagine what they’re going through,” Sims said. “It was insane. It was just surreal.”
An immediate search and rescue was called with passengers helping by looking into the sea from the deck, but sadly the search for the missing man was called off by the US Coast Guard, per the Daily Mail.
The Coast Guard has since called off their search. Credit: Fatih Aktas/Anadolu Agency/Getty
The 20-year-old has now been identified as Levion Parker, of North Port, Florida.
Levion’s father, Francel, has since spoken to The Daily Sun, stating that he believes that his son is still alive due to his experience as a diver who worked on a fishing boat.
“As soon as he went off the side, I prayed over him. I was confident the prayers I said over my son were heard. I stand on the word of God. I believe he is alive,” Francel said.
The father said that he threw six life rings from the ship in the hopes that his son would be able to get hold of one.
The Liberty of the Seas came to a stop around 20 minutes after Levion jumped from the ship, with the crew immediately launching search boats to look for Levion.
“We don’t drink,” Francel said. “I’d like to know how my son was served so much alcohol.”
Levion jumped from a window on the Libert of the Seas. Credit: Bruno Vincent/Getty
The Royal Caribbean issued a statement to The New York Post after the horrific incident, saying: “The ship’s crew immediately launched a search and rescue effort alongside the US Coast Guard, who has taken over the search.
“Our Care Team is providing support and assistance to the guest’s family during this difficult time. For the privacy of the guest and their family, we have no additional details to share.”