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| Cruise passengers fall overboard off Australia | Cruise passengers fall overboard off Australia |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| A search is continuing off the south-eastern coast of Australia for a man and a woman who appear to have fallen from a cruise ship on Wednesday night. | |
| A surveillance camera on the Carnival Spirit showed the pair plunging from the mid deck, about 120km (75 miles) off the coastal city of Forster. | A surveillance camera on the Carnival Spirit showed the pair plunging from the mid deck, about 120km (75 miles) off the coastal city of Forster. |
| They were only discovered missing after the vessel docked in Sydney, some 300km south of Forster, on Thursday morning. | They were only discovered missing after the vessel docked in Sydney, some 300km south of Forster, on Thursday morning. |
| It is unclear whether the two jumped or fell by accident. | |
| The authorities say an aeroplane, a helicopter and boats are searching a 1,000 sq km (386 sq miles) area of the sea. | The authorities say an aeroplane, a helicopter and boats are searching a 1,000 sq km (386 sq miles) area of the sea. |
| The pair are believed to have been in the water since 20:50 local time on Wednesday (11:50 GMT). | |
| They have been named as Paul Rossington, 30, and Kristen Schroder, 27, according the Australian broadcaster ABC. | |
| "This is a tragic event at the moment, but we're holding out hope we might be able to find these people alive," New South Wales police officer Mark Hutchings said. | "This is a tragic event at the moment, but we're holding out hope we might be able to find these people alive," New South Wales police officer Mark Hutchings said. |
| However, he added: "Obviously when you think about the circumstances of going over the side of a cruise ship I have serious concerns about the welfare of both those people." | However, he added: "Obviously when you think about the circumstances of going over the side of a cruise ship I have serious concerns about the welfare of both those people." |
| The vessel's last stop before Sydney was Mare Island in New Caledonia on Monday. | The vessel's last stop before Sydney was Mare Island in New Caledonia on Monday. |
| Nearly 2,700 passengers were aboard the ship on a South Pacific Cruise. | Nearly 2,700 passengers were aboard the ship on a South Pacific Cruise. |
| The vessel is operated by Carnival Cruise Lines. | The vessel is operated by Carnival Cruise Lines. |
| Spokesman Peter Taylor said that two people could not be accounted for when the rest of the passengers disembarked. | |
| "We have naturally been concerned since we became aware that two passengers were missing from Carnival Spirit and our thoughts are clearly with their families at this difficult time," Mr Taylor said, according to ABC. |