An elderly American woman lost her life after a tourist boat sank in the Bahamas.
Many people are asking questions after a ferry carrying cruise ship passengers to Blue Lagoon Island in the Bahamas suddenly sank. The incident unfortunately claimed the life of an 75-year-old American woman.
On Tuesday, the horrifying footage showed passengers fighting to cling onto the two-decker as as it tilted dangerously to one side. As the camera pans out, scared passengers can be heard screaming in fear, and some seem to have fallen to one side of the boat.
Some tourists could be seen jumping into the choppy waters to escape the sinking boat. According to TMZ, Police say the incident claimed the life of a 75-year-old woman from Colorado.
At this time, the woman’s name or exact cause of death has not been released.
American tourist Kelly Schissel posted a TikTok shortly after the disaster. She claims that it was only when a crying crew member rushed up to the deck for a life jacket that she and most of the other passengers understood that something was going terribly wrong.
To add, the crew members were panicking so severely that they failed to guide passengers during the emergency. Thankfully, Schissel and the others were able to put their life jackets on and move to the upper level of the vessel.
After one person jumped into the water, other passengers followed suit. Regrettably, due to the turbulent waters, numerous passengers found it challenging to stay afloat, even with the aid of life jackets.
A short while later, rescue boats were deployed and gathered everyone to safety. Schissel was able to board a random fisherman’s boat that just so happened to be close by. A lucky coincidence.
Once the shaken passengers arrived at the Blue Lagoon, Schissel states that she took matters into her own hands by directing everyone to a nearby pavilion for a head count.
TMZ also reports that two other unidentified passengers were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
The privately-owned boat, included in a tour operator’s package for cruise lines visiting the Bahamas, departed from Paradise Island in Nassau at 9:20 AM. Less than two hours into the journey, it began facing unexpected waves. Schissel explains more in the video below:
For such a rare and tragic event to happen, we can only imagine the severe shock the passengers endured. But for the crew members abandoning their duties to protect others? Seems like those passengers may have a lawsuit on their hands!
Our hearts our with the victims and their families at this time.