A recent video posted by a guest who sailed on the Carnival Conquest has raised questions about how Carnival Cruise Line dealt with the disappearance of a fellow passenger. The video has garnered significant attention, amassing over 653,000 views on TikTok.
Woman Questions How Carnival Handled Missing Passenger
A video posted on TikTok by Jenn Lyles went viral after sharing her experience on Carnival Conquest. With over 653,000 views, 50,000 likes, and 2,000 comments, her video has struck a nerve. Lyles was on the same cruise when Kevin McGrath went missing and decided to vocalize her concerns on social media.
She questioned the cruise line’s communication strategies: “I was on the Carnival cruise with the guy who went missing. To be clear, I don’t know him. His name is Kevin McGrath. I’ve never met him. But I was on the cruise ship, and it’s weird that no one has been alerted.”
You can watch the video below:
Lyles also highlighted the need for more proactive communication from Carnival Cruise Line. Despite receiving an email survey asking her to rate her cruise experience, Lyles received no correspondence alerting her about the missing guest.
“Like, I got an email this morning from Carnival that was like, here’s a survey; tell us how your cruise was. How about an email that says, ‘Hey, there’s a guy missing. Did you see him?” she asked, echoing the thoughts of many who viewed her viral video.
Lyles continues to state that she only found out about McGrath being missing when she was scrolling through her phone later: “Like, I found out he was missing on the news. On Yahoo News, scrolling. I was like, oh my goodness, that was the ship I was on. Is this what happens when you go missing on a cruise ship?”
Kevin McGrath’s Disappearance
Kevin McGrath was last seen on September 4 at around 2 a.m. aboard the 2,980-guest Carnival Conquest, which had just returned from a 3-night cruise to Bimini in the Bahamas. McGrath was not accounted for during standard debarkation procedures, and his absence was reported at approximately 7 a.m. that morning.
Following that, the US Coast Guard launched a search and rescue mission that covered 3,300 square nautical miles around the port area.
A statement from Carnival Cruise Line clarified, “The guest was not detected by surveillance systems, including U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, during the debarkation process.”
Sean McGrath, the father of missing guest Kevin McGrath, is desperate for answers about his son’s disappearance.
“At this point, I can’t really say because it was verified that he did not go overboard, and he did not get off the ship via the (pass) being scanned,” said Sean to the TC Palm Treasure Coast website.
Carnival Conquest has since embarked on its subsequent voyage, a 4-night journey to the Bahamas. This cruise includes stops at Carnival’s private island, Half Moon Cay, and Nassau before returning to PortMiami on Friday, September 8.
Addressing Concerns Raised in the Video
The points raised by Jenn Lyles in her viral video strike a chord with many. However, it’s important to recognize that the video may not present a complete picture of Carnival Cruise Line’s procedures for missing guests or possible man-overboard situations.
Cruise ships, including the Carnival Conquest, typically have stringent protocols and multiple layers of surveillance, including man-overboard alarms and systems designed to detect when someone goes overboard.
Therefore, while Lyles’ concerns are worth exploring, and the guest feedback form could be seen as unsympathetic, they do not necessarily reflect shortcomings in the established safety measures on cruise ships.
In the meantime, Carnival Cruise Line’s care team assists McGrath’s family and keeps them updated on the search efforts, while we at Cruise Hive wish them all the best during this difficult time.
