Young woman dies after horror cruise fall
A woman in her 20s has died after plunging from the MSC Virtuosa cruise ship in the middle of the night.
The cruise ship was travelling from Lisbon to Southampton when disaster struck at around 2am on October 12.
While air ambulance successfully winched her out of the English Channel, she was pronounced dead at the hospital despite the best efforts of medics.
British and French police are now probing the unidentified woman's death, The Sun reported.
The ship originally sounded a Man Overboard alert and spotlights were then used to light up the sea, as aircraft from France and the Channel Islands attended the sea.
Infra-red cameras were used to locate the woman, who would've struggled to survive in the cold water.
At around 3am French time, an emergency alert was issued saying that a person was missing, a coast guard told The Sun.
A helicopter was sent to a search area just north Les Casquets rocks, near the Channel Island of Alderney, while a plane from Channel Islands Air Search was sent to the scene from Guernsey, along with lifeboat crews.
The £650 million ($A1.2 billion) vessel, which has a crew of more than 1500 and can carry up to 6300 passengers, remained in the area before making its way to Southampton.
“A guest on board MSC Virtuosa went overboard on 12 October, while the ship was sailing to Southampton,” a Virtuosa spokesperson said.
“The body was later recovered with the involvement of the authorities.
“We are deeply saddened by this tragic event, and our thoughts are with the family during this difficult time.
“Out of respect for their privacy, we will not be providing further details.”
A Hampshire Police spokesperson added: “The investigation is not being managed by UK authorities.”
Images: P.Cartwright / Shutterstock.com/ Channel Islands Air Search