Thomas Gigler, 56, went overboard on the ‘Carnival Panorama’ on Sept 18
Credit: ALFREDO ESTRELLA / AFP) (Photo by ALFREDO ESTRELLA/AFP via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Thomas Gigler, a 56-year-old father of three, went overboard during a Carnival Panorama cruise to Mexico
- The U.S. and Mexico Coast Guards are involved in the search after the ship confirmed he went overboard
- Gigler, a longtime computer programmer, was set to celebrate his 15th wedding anniversary days after the incident
A 56-year-old father of three has been identified as the man who went overboard on a week-long sailing to Mexico last week.
Thomas Gigler was sailing with his wife, Michelle Gigler, and their three sons — ages 13, 11 and 9 — on board the Carnival Panorama when he went overboard on Sept. 18. The U.S. Coast Guard Southwest District confirmed to PEOPLE it first received the report on Saturday afternoon and subsequently dispatched a fixed wing aircraft to assist the search. The ship was sailing off the coast of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, en route to Long Beach, Calif.
Michelle, 48, reportedly raised the alarm after Thomas went missing on Friday evening. On Saturday morning, she allegedly requested staff help to locate her husband. His name was reportedly announced over the ship’s PA system multiple times before passengers were ordered to their rooms for a lockdown.
Credit: Mark RALSTON / AFP) (Photo by MARK RALSTON/AFP via Getty
“I’ve done a lot of cruises here and never had anything like this done before. We just did what they told us to do and [crew members] were walking around saying, ‘OK everyone back to your rooms,’ ” passenger Michael Bedwell told California outlet ABC 7. “We didn’t really know what was going on. They just kept saying they are looking for a person and now we know he jumped overboard I guess.”
The lockdown reportedly lasted about an hour before a crew member announced: “The team has completed the review of our man overboard cameras. Sadly, we’ve been able to confirm that the guest has gone overboard. Local authorities will continue the search and rescue.”
A spokesperson for Carnival Cruise Line told PEOPLE in a statement that when notified of a missing guest, “the ship’s team initiated search and investigation procedures, including reviewing CCTV footage and notifying both the U.S. and Mexico Coast Guards.”
Gigler’s sister, Wendy Dowden, told the Daily Mail she suspects a mental health episode occurred while the family was on board: “We think something must have happened in his head. He wasn’t in his right mind to have done this,” she said.
Dowden also claimed to the outlet that Thomas and his wife Michelle “were getting along quite well” before the incident.
She shared that the family of five lived in Redlands, Calif., about 65 miles east of Los Angeles. Thomas was a computer programmer who spent 24 years with software firm Esri. The couple was set to celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary on Wednesday, only days after he went overboard.
PEOPLE has reached out to the U.S. Coast Guard Southwest District and Dowden for comment.
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According to CruiseMapper, the Carnival Panorama departed Long Beach on Sept. 13. The seven-night, round-trip sailing included stops in Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta before returning to California on Sept. 20.
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