An employee on the P&O cruise ship Arvia died on board Sunday, the company announced.
The crew member died “following an accident on board,” P&O Cruises revealed, declining to offer any additional information. An investigation into the worker’s death is ongoing.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with their family and friends both on board and at home and we are providing every possible support to them,” a spokesperson for P&O Cruises said in a statement.
According to Cruise Mapper, the 16-deck Arvia left Southampton, England, on Oct. 24 bound for Bridgetown, Barbados. The 14-day one-way voyage also includes stops in St. Kitts, St. Lucia and the Canary Islands.
Prior to this run, the Arvia was last on the water for a 13-day round trip from Southampton through Spain and back from Oct. 11-24.
Per Cruise Hive, the Arvia can accommodate up to 6,685 guests and is home to approximately 1,700 international crew members.
Arvia was in Spain after crew member’s ‘accident’
While details on the deceased and what led to their death are unavailable, we do know the Arvia made a stop in Spain following the tragedy.
The Port of A Coruña in Spain confirmed as much in a translated tweet Sunday.
“Yesterday the Arvia made a stop in A Coruña following a workplace accident involving a deceased crew member,” the port said. “It remained docked from 3 p.m. until night, when it set sail for Tenerife.”
The ship is scheduled to spend one day in Tenerife Tuesday before embarking for its next destination.
Cruise ship deaths happen rarely, but for variety of reasons
In July, a 35-year-old Royal Caribbean International crew member died after going overboard. The man apparently jumped into the water after reportedly stabbing a 28-year-old female colleague.
Two months before that, in May, Captain Michele Bartolomei of the Diamond Princess passed away from a sudden medical emergency while the ship was spending an overnight in Taiwan. In 2024, Captain James MacDonald of Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas died two weeks after suffering a heart attack while on board.
There have also been multiple instances of passengers dying, including last week, when a 61-year-old English woman died following a medical emergency while the boat she was on was docked in Cannes, France.
