The wreckage of cruise liner Costa Concordia after hitting underwater rocks (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Cruise holidays often represent the trip of a lifetime for many families, who dedicate months or even years to planning their perfect holiday.
While most voyages are filled with joy and smooth sailing, occasionally, some high-end getaways take an unforeseen and tragic turn.
A stark example of this emerged recently when a distraught father was heard before leaping to his death. Below, we delve into some of the harrowing incidents that have occurred on cruise ships.
Haunting last words
Touched on above, Dan McGilvray, 51, a financial advisor from Colorado, met a shocking end on Boxing Day when he jumped overboard from the lavish Norwegian Epic, a £1bn vessel cruising the Caribbean Sea. Overpowering his family members, including his mother, he plunged into the waters and drowned.
Dan McGilvray drowned after jumping from the cruise ship (Image: Beacon Pointe)
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Bahamian authorities suggest he may have had a bad reaction to seizure medication. According to , on the afternoon of December 26, he screamed a heart-wrenching cry: “I can’t take it anymore.”
Despite extensive efforts by the Royal Bahamas Police Force, McGilvray’s body was never recovered, reports .
Speaking about the tragedy, a representative for Norwegian Cruise Line said: “The guest was traveling with a large group and his family on board is being attended to and supported during this very challenging situation. Our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones during this difficult time.”
Harrowing photo
Just four months prior to this incident, another holiday-maker’s life came to a premature end after he fell overboard from a cruise ship.
A 30-year-old Taiwanese man, identified only by his surname Li, tragically lost his life on a cruise trip aboard the 14-deck Norwegian Spirit liner. The ship had set sail from Keelung Port in Taiwan for a six-day journey with stops planned in Nagasaki, Japan and an island in South Korea.
Taiwanese national Li was snapped falling to his death (The Daily Express has chosen to crop out the body for sensitivity) (Image: undefined)
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However, just four days into the voyage, Li fell overboard. A poignant image shows a couple and a child looking out to sea as the victim plummeted.
The incident occurred on August 8, 2024, and search boats were able to recover the body shortly after. An eyewitness said: “We were sightseeing on the deck at that time, just looking at the sea, and then we heard a huge noise. Then everyone looked towards us and someone realised that a passenger had fallen into the sea.”
Reports suggest that Li lost his footing while standing on the top deck.
‘Sewage on walls’
In another unrelated incident, passengers on the US cruise ship Carnival Triumph found themselves stranded in the Gulf of Mexico following an engine fire in February 2013. Passengers described fighting like “savages” over cold onion and cucumber sandwiches amidst conditions of sewage and urine.
Passengers laying on mattresses on the third deck of the ship (Image: AFP/Getty Images)
Complaints included urine-soaked carpets and people being forced to sleep in tents.
Passengers endured a nightmare cruise experience, with food supplies dwindling due to a fire-induced power outage. Ann Barlow expressed her disgust to CNN: “It’s disgusting. It’s the worst thing ever.”
Tony, her husband, recounted the horrific conditions, including “sewage running down the walls” and observing desperate holidaymakers using plastic bags as toilets amid chaos where 4,200 guests lined up for just five available toilets, facing a lack of electricity and air conditioning.
One woman’s distressing text to her husband read: “Room smells like an outhouse. Cold water only, toilets haven’t work in 3 1/2 days. Happy Valentines Day! ! ! I love u and wish I was there. It’s 4:00 am. Can’t sleep…it’s cold and I’m starting to get sick.”
Despite the ordeal, passengers were relieved to dock in Alabama, and Carnival Cruise Lines offered refunds and $500 compensation for the inconvenience, acknowledging the ship’s mechanical issues.
Firemen look at the emerged side of the cruise liner Costa Conco (Image: AFP/Getty Images)
Costa Concordia crash
In another maritime disaster, January 13, 2012, marked the chilling episode when the Costa Concordia, Italy’s pride and longest cruise ship at the time, launched in 2005, met its fate. The 290-meter luxury vessel, accommodating over 3,700 passengers aided by a crew of 1,100, set off from Civitavecchia near Lazio.
Tragedy ensued mere hours later as it veered onto underwater rocks causing severe damage that resulted in partial sinking – a critical moment where Captain Francesco Schettino infamously abandoned ship to escape death.
Despite the heroic efforts of coastguards, who rescued 4,252 people on board, the tragedy recorded 33 deaths during the rescue mission, including 27 passengers, five staff members and one person from the salvage squad. Marking the tenth anniversary, one survivor recounted to : “I remember the screams of the people, the people who were jumping into the sea. I remember the cold and the sensation of terror in everybody’s eyes.”
The Costa Concordia a day after the cruise ship ran aground and keeled over off the Isola del Giglio (Image: Guardia di Finanza press office/)
They added: “It is extremely emotional. We come here today to remember, most importantly, those who are no longer with us, and to relive the hell that we went through and try in some way to exorcise it.”
Captain Schettino faced a 16-year prison sentence after being convicted of manslaughter, having abandoned ship while others desperately tried to save lives.
The incident is now known as the most significant cruise disaster since the Titanic.