UPDATE: Because they won’t be able to complete the cruise in the scheduled time, the ship is returning to port in Miami. According to Stereogum, all of the remaining DJ sets had been cancelled after the incident, but Major Lazer and Dillon Francis will perform on the ship’s return, rather than the original plan for them to perform on the beach. You can hear the ship captain’s announcement, embedded below.
On Thursday night, a woman fell from the Norwegian Pearl cruise ship during the Mad Decent Boat Party, a cruise-based EDM festival. The Coast Guard is searching for the woman, who has not yet been identified.
Norwegian Cruise Line, the owners of the Norwegian Pearl, put out a statement saying that the woman jumped overboard on purpose. The statement also said, “The ship’s crew immediately initiated rescue measures, including deploying three rescue boats and notifying the Coast Guard and other relevant authorities.” It happened in the Yucatan Channel, about 22 nautical miles from the coast of Cuba, according to NBC News. The Coast Guard sent out a cutter and a C-130 rescue plane, both from Clearwater, Florida, to search for the woman.
The Mad Decent Boat Party takes place this year from November 11 through 15, with acts like A-Trak, Diplo and ILoveMakonnen in its lineup. The cruise was sailing from Miami, Florida, to Cozumel, Mexico. It’s a festival run by the Mad Decent record label, co-founded by Diplo. In the past, the lineup has included artists like Major Lazer, Flosstradamus and Dillon Francis, all of whom are also there this year. Some of the artists onboard tweeted about the incident:
Everyone please be safe
— Alison Wonderland (@awonderdj) November 13, 2015
Its dark outside too. Praying they find her in time..
— Sam Feldt (@SamFeldtMusic) November 12, 2015
According to some performers and guests who were updating social media about the situation, the ship reversed its course to the last known location where the missing woman was present on the ship. The aforementioned statement from the cruise line said, “Both the ship and charter company teams are providing support to the family and all impacted guests during this difficult time.”