A man who plunged into the ocean to his apparent death after falling from his cabin's balcony was on his first ever cruise and was the 'life of the party' his wife has said.
Jennilyn Michelle Blosser spoke to reporters telling them that the man who went overboard is her husband, Ronnie Lee Peale Jr.
She described him as "the life of the party" and said it had been his first cruise but that he had loved it so much she was "sure he would have been willing to do one monthly".
Coast guard have confirmed they are searching for a 35 year-old man, who went overboard off a Carnival Cruise Line ship 186 miles east of Jacksonville, Florida.
According to a statement from the cruise line, they examined CCTV footage which showed the man leaning over the railing of his cabin's balcony before dropping into the sea.
The cruise line have said they are providing support to the guest’s companion and travelling party who are still on board.
Other passengers reported hearing Ronnie's name called repeatedly over the tannoy as his loved ones and the crew tried to find him.
In a fundraiser setup by Jennilyn Blosser, from Crimora, Virginia, she describes Ronnie as someone who "loved to make friends with everyone."
She wrote: "Hi this is Jennilyn also known as Ronnie’s Lover. We went on a cruise to celebrate my birthday and sadly he went overboard and still has not been recovered."
She told WTKR : "He was the life of the party."
She added: "He loved the cruise life being able to drink, gamble, and socialise put him in his happy place. This was his first cruise and I’m sure he would have been willing to do one monthly."
In the fundraiser she added that although it was the unfortunate man's first-ever cruise but "he had a great time and made plenty of friends"
She continued: "This was Ronnie’s first cruise and thankfully he had a great time and made plenty of friends. He is our social butterfly that was always on the move and loved to make friends with everyone.
"The cruise was definitely a place he enjoyed. I never could have imagined something like this could happen. Devastated to say the least."
Carnival Cruise Line released a statement which read: "Carnival Magic has reported a man overboard to the US Coast Guard. He was reported missing by his companion late Monday afternoon and an initial review of closed circuit security footage confirms that he leaned over the railing of his stateroom balcony and dropped into the water at approximately 4:10 am early Monday morning.
"The US Coast Guard has released the ship from any search and rescue efforts and advised the ship’s captain to continue on its way to Norfolk where it will arrive as planned on Tuesday. The Carnival Care Team is providing support to the guest’s companion and travelling party who are on board."
In a statement posted on Twitter, the USCG said: "The Coast Guard is utilising both air and water assets to conduct the search."
