A Sad Cruise Ending

Hattiesburg, MS: The Hattiesburg American reports that the search for a local 77-year-old man who went missing from Carnival Cruise Lines' Fantasy has ended. After investigators discovered a suicide note in the man's cabin, the Coast Guard suspended its search for him at 10:15 am, Sunday, Dec. 2nd. Apparently the note indicated the man, who took the cruise alone, had health problems. The emergency contact person listed on the man's cruise forms indicated he was divorced and, "he did not have any family."

While the victim's identity has not been released, he was reportedly last seen at 7 pm Friday. The Coast Guard searched 400 square miles in the Gulf of Mexico and part of the Mississippi River from the Southwest Pass at the mouth of the river, north to the Port of New Orleans, and even sifted through the ship's dock area in hopes that the missing passenger would be located.

Carnival Cruise Lines has released this statement, "During the debarkation process for the Carnival Fantasy, which had docked in New Orleans (Saturday) morning at the end of a five-day cruise, it was determined that one passenger was unaccounted for. The 77-year-old male was traveling by himself in a balcony suite. The cabin door was double-locked from the inside but the guest was not in the cabin. All proper authorities, including the FBI and US Coast Guard were notified. Based on a variety of factors, foul play is not suspected."