On Thursday, the US Coast Guard called off the search for an Australian man who fell overboard from a cruise ship near Hawaii two days earlier.
The man, who was a passenger on the Royal Caribbean Quantum of the Seas cruise from Brisbane to Honolulu, was identified as 35-year-old Warwick Tollemache and remembered by relations as a “gentle soul”.
The Tollemache plunged into the ocean about 500 miles south of Kailua Kona on the Big Island shortly after 11 p.m. local time on Tuesday.
The cruise ship, which left Brisbane on April 12, remained where it went overboard for around two hours while crews searched for the missing passenger before handing over the search to local authorities and resuming the course.
“During a voyage across the Pacific, a guest aboard the Quantum of the Seas fell overboard,” a Royal Caribbean spokesperson said. “The ship’s crew immediately launched a search and rescue operation and are working closely with local authorities.”
The next morning, Coast Guard aircrews scoured the waters—conducting five searches in six hours.
On Thursday, Coast Guard officials announced the end of the search after consulting with Tollemache’s family.
“After reviewing all relevant information regarding the case and discussing it with next of kin, the Coast Guard has made the difficult decision to suspend lively searches for a passenger aboard Quantum of the Seas,” said Kevin Cooper, search and rescue officer mission coordinator for the Joint Coordination Center Honolulu Rescue.
Family members posted touching tributes to Tollemache on social media.
“Our family is devastated by the lack of our beloved Warwick. He was a sort, beautiful and mild soul who was adored by everyone who knew him,” Mandy Tollemache said in a family statement. “We’ll miss him very much.”
A friend of the Brisbane man called his death “the worst news ever” in a Facebook post.
“I’ll miss you a lot, my friend, brother,” wrote Terence Dicks. “My heart hurts a lot knowing that I won’t ever see or hold you again.”