Search called off for Augusta County man who fell overboard on cruise
The Coast Guard suspended the search Wednesday for an Augusta County man who went overboard on a cruise ship Monday.
Ronnie Peale Jr., 35, is a 2006 Fort Defiance High School graduate. His Facebook page lists that he lives in New Hope. The ship, according to a Coast Guard press release, was 186 miles east of Jacksonville, Florida. Coast Guard crews searched more than 5,171 square miles and 60 hours before calling off the search.
"To my friends and family. Thank you for your prayers for my son Ronnie Peale Junior and for our family. The coast guard has now ended their search," Peale's mother, Linda Peale, wrote on a public Facebook post. "Thank you for your prayers and best wishes. To those who cared...we love you."
Carnival Cruise Lines personnel contacted the Coast Guard at 6:36 p.m., Monday, the release said, reporting that a passenger fell off the cruise ship Carnival Magic and entered the water.
Coast Guard watchstanders launched air crews and diverted the Coast Guard Cutter Escanaba to conduct search and rescue efforts from the air and on the water. U.S. Navy ships and aircraft in the region also assisted in the search efforts.
“The Seventh Coast Guard District dispatched multiple search and rescue assets as soon as we were notified of the missing person," said Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Hooper, Coast Guard District Seven search and rescue mission coordinator. "Our command center watchstanders provided search patterns to cutter crews and air crews who actively searched from Monday through Wednesday evening. The decision to suspend the active search efforts pending further development is never one we take lightly. We offer our most sincere condolences to Mr. Peale’s family and friends.”
Peale's companion on the cruise, Jennilyn Blosser, created a GoFund me page Tuesday, writing that she never could have imagined something like this could happen.
"Please keep our family in your prayers and thanks for your support," Blosser wrote. "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."
Blosser asked visitors to the page to refrain from negative comments, saying she reactivated the account because so many people reached out to help. It's unclear when she had deactivated it.
"His family and I are family and we are in this together," Blosser wrote. "This has already been hard enough the negative comments just make it harder for us."
In a public Facebook comment, Lisa Fulk identified herself as Peale's sister, sharing a quote from Edgar Allen Poe.
“The boundaries which divide Life from Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends, and where the other begins?”
"My little brother, Ronnie and I shared two loves alongside our love for our family," Fulk wrote on the post. "We both loved Chris Stapleton and we both had a long-time love for the works of Edgar Allan Poe. I will see you again little brother."
Anyone with new information is asked to call the Coast Guard District Seven Command Center at 305-415-6800.
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— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Search called off for Augusta County man who fell overboard on cruise
