Passenger recalls 'miracle' rescue after child and father fall overboard on Disney cruise

Natalie Stechyson · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 30, 2025 11:53 AM EDT | Last Updated: 15 minutes ago

A travel aboard a Disney Dream cruise astir turned into a nightmare this play aft a child reportedly fell overboard and her dada jumped successful aft her.

Both the child, reportedly property five, and her begetter were saved, according to multiple media reports and different passengers aboard the four-day cruise connected a Disney Dream ship.

Shannon Lindholm, a rider connected the ship, says she didn't spot the fall, but she did ticker the rescue happen. The vessel was astatine sea, connected its mode from the Bahamas to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., erstwhile the miss fell successful connected Sunday, Lindholm told CBC News.

"We heard the M.O.B. telephone connected the intercom," Lindholm said, referring to codification for "man overboard."

"Then, we watched the rescue from the 4th floor. Disney did a fantastic job. It was accelerated and amazing," said Lindholm, 38, from Houston.

Lindholm shared a photograph of the rescue vessel going into the water. She told CBC that wrong 5 minutes, the kid and her dada were backmost connected the cruise ship.

"The antheral rescued was giving a thumbs-up motion arsenic their tiny vessel was approaching the cruise ship, and everyone cheered connected the vessel arsenic they boarded backmost on," she said.

"Miracle, for sure."

CBC News has reached retired to Disney Cruise Lines for confirmation, but they person yet to respond. In a connection to USA Today, a Disney spokesperson said the unit "swiftly rescued 2 guests from the water."

"We commend our Crew Members for their exceptional skills and punctual actions, which ensured the harmless instrumentality of some guests to the vessel wrong minutes. We are committed to the information and well-being of our guests, and this incidental highlights the effectiveness of our information protocols," the connection continued.

Social media posts picture swift rescue

In the "Disney Dream Cruise Ship Group" connected Facebook, different passengers described the mishap arsenic occurring from the 4th platform of the ship. According to the Disney Dream's floorplan disposable connected the Disney Cruise website, the 4th platform has a walking way that wraps astir the ship.

"A miss fell overboard from the 4th platform and her dada went successful aft her," wrote a rider Sunday.

"Thankfully the DCL rescue squad was connected it instantly and some were saved," helium added.

It's unclear however the kid fell overboard. There are plexiglass barriers connected the decks, according to aggregate rider posts and Disney cruise forums.

On the Facebook page, immoderate passengers described the terrified parent yelling from the deck, "She's 5 and she can't swim!"

"It was incredible," Lindholm said of the rescue.

WATCH | How AI tin velocity up hunt and rescues astatine sea:

Rare to autumn overboard

It's uncommon for passengers to autumn overboard. According to a study by commercialized assemblage Cruise Lines International Association, 212 radical (both passengers and crew) fell overboard betwixt 2009 and 2019, which they accidental represents conscionable 0.00004 per cent of passengers and crew. 

Nearly half, oregon 48 per cent, were rescued, according to the report. And successful each lawsuit wherever the origin could beryllium determined "following a cautious investigation, it was recovered to beryllium the effect of an intentional oregon reckless act."

In 2019, an Indiana toddler fell to her decease from the 11th storey of a cruise vessel docked successful Puerto Rico. The miss was travelling with her parents, 2 siblings and 2 sets of grandparents aboard the Freedom of the Seas, a Royal Caribbean Cruise.

Her gramps was yet charged successful her death. He was holding Chloe Wiegand erstwhile she slipped from his grasp and fell astir 150 feet to her decease from an unfastened window. 

He said helium didn't cognize the model was unfastened erstwhile helium lifted Chloe up to it.