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Coast Guard suspends search for woman who fell from cruise ship

The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for a 40-year-old woman who fell from a cruise ship in Lynn Canal, Alaska on Tuesday.

Rescuers were called after receiving a report at 3 a.m. from the captain of the cruise ship Celebrity Solstice.

Crews used an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter and a 45-foot response boat to search for the woman.

Rescuers said they searched for more than nine hours, covering 68 square nautical miles, which is more than 78 miles in length.

“Despite our best efforts to locate the individual, it is with heavy hearts that we make the decision to suspend the search,” said Coast Guard Lt. j.g. Trevor Layman, a Sector Juneau Command Center duty officer. “The decision to suspend active searching is based on a number of factors including weather, sea state, water temperature and other variables.”

The incident remains under investigation.