After a Royal Caribbean ship returned to Singapore on Monday, a passenger was found dead in their cruise ship cabin.
According to a report in The Straits Times, police were called at 6:35am because a 27-year-old man died while in his stateroom.
The incident occurred on Ovation of the Seas, which had returned to the Marina Bay Cruise Centre in Singapore.
Police said the man was found motionless on the ship and pronounced dead by the ship's doctor. Every cruise ship in Royal Caribbean's fleet has a medical center, including a doctor. The medical staff can handle minor issues and will otherwise triage issues until the passenger can be safely transported off the ship to a facility on land.
An investigation has begun, but police do not suspect foul play based on preliminary findings.
No word yet on who the man is, and whether he is from Singapore or another country.
Royal Caribbean has made no official announcement regarding the incident.
Announcement made on the ship
Ovation of the Seas had just returned from a 3-night cruise to Penang. The sailing began on January 16th.
According to a different report by Mothership.sg, a passenger claims the crew made an announcement over the ship's public address system at around 5:45am.
The passenger said there was a code, followed by a stateroom number.
Cruise ships use special codes to quickly alert crew members to a developing situation. Rather than try to explain what's happening over the PA system, a special code is used to quickly and easily convey information.
Crew members come from all parts of the world, so it's easier to have a code than speak sentences.
Plus, the codes reduce confusion among guests who don't necessarily need to know about certain events.
Each code relies on a Greek letter, followed by the location.
Medical emergencies are called out by saying the letter "Alpha" three times.
Delayed disembarkation
The incident delayed the ship from being allowed to drop off passengers or allow new ones on.
Royal Caribbean Blog reader Robert Jaworski shared a report, "Ship docked as scheduled at 7.00am but as of 10.00am no passengers have been allowed to disembark. Singapore authorities have not cleared the ship."
He then said he heard two, "alpha, alpha, alpha" calls, "one at 4am ish and another at 5.30am ish. Guests in groups of five being called to guest services since 8.00am ish."
Ovation of the Seas is scheduled to depart today for another three-night cruise to Penang.
