Coast Guard suspends search for woman who went overboard from cruise ship

MIAMI, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- The search for a woman who went overboard from a cruise ship near the Bahamas was suspended, the U.S. Coast Guard announced.

Rina Patel, 32, from Interlaken, N.Y., was reported missing early Wednesday from the Carnival Cruise line ship Carnival Ecstasy approximately 27 miles southwest of Freeport, Bahamas.

Officials have yet to determine if Patel jumped or fell from the ship's 11th deck. A Carnival spokesman said on Wednesday that witnesses saw Patel jump overboard at about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday.

The Carnival Ecstasy was traveling from Nassau, Bahamas, to Charleston, S.C.

The search, which involved 43 hours of a coordinated response by Coast Guard helicopter crews, airplane crews and crews of two ships, was suspended Thursday evening.

"We would like to extend our deepest condolences to the loved ones and all that have been affected by this tragedy. Suspending search efforts is always a painful decision, but despite our best efforts we have been unable to locate Rina and have made the difficult decision to suspend the search pending any further developments," Capt. Todd Coggeshall, chief of response management for the Coast Guard's Miami-based 7th District, said in a statement.