Search launched after passenger disappears from Emerald Princess
Authorities believe surveillance footage showing a man falling from Deck 9 may depict the missing California passenger.
Kenneth Schwalbe, a 59-year-old passenger from California, disappeared while traveling aboard Princess Cruises’ Emerald Princess. He was last seen on the ship at 8:30 p.m., and his absence was noticed the following morning when he could not be located.
After receiving the missing-person report, the U.S. Coast Guard began a search along the northern coastline. Police investigators met Emerald Princess when the ship docked at its initial stop in Hilo.
Law enforcement officers reviewing the ship’s surveillance footage observed a man falling from Deck 9 at 4:18 a.m. Friday. Authorities said they had reason to believe the person shown in the video was the missing passenger.
Emerald Princess was operating a 16-night voyage around Hawaii from Los Angeles, with calls including Hilo, Honolulu and Nawiliwili. The ship was scheduled to replace its final port call with Kailua-Kona because wildfires had damaged Lahaina Harbor in Maui, before returning to California.