The captain of a P&O cruise ship near New Caledonia has made the sad announcement to passengers that a woman who fell overboard hasn't been found and the ship is heading back to Brisbane.
The woman fell overboard from the Pacific Dawn about 4pm on Thursday, around 150 nautical miles west of New Caledonia, during a week-long cruise in the Pacific.
A search began immediately and continued through the night, with rough conditions hampering efforts.
It was officially called off on Friday at 7.30am as hopes faded of finding the missing woman.
"It is with a very heavy heart that I need to let you know that we have been unable to locate our guest," the captain of the Dawn Pacific told passengers on Friday morning.
"We are still in the area of the incident, and the weather conditions with the swell three to four metres high, as you can see outside, the strong wind made our search extremely challenging.
"As a result, we have now made the extremely difficult decision to continue our journey towards Brisbane.
"I know I speak on behalf of all of you when I say our thoughts and prayers are with the family."
The woman was believed to have been on holiday with her husband and children.
"The difficult decision to suspend the search was made only after expert advice that survival after this length of time in difficult sea conditions and after a full night at sea was not considered possible," Carnival Australia spokesman David Jones said on Friday.
Mr Jones said earlier that a crew member notified the bridge as soon as the woman fell and the 'man overboard' incident response was activated immediately.
"In line with this response, Pacific Dawn turned around to follow the course it was on at the time of the incident."
In line with normal procedure, the Pacific Dawn incident has been referred to Queensland Police and to the Coroner for appropriate inquiries.
A Queensland Police spokeswoman said officers would be meeting the vessel when it arrives in Brisbane on Saturday. The ship is due back at 11am.
The spokeswoman said Queensland Police would be assisting overseas authorities with the investigation. She said the primary response lies with the ship's flag state which is the UK.
Passengers said the woman's husband saw her fall and went into shock. Life rings were immediately thrown into the water, but there was no sign of her, The Courier-Mail reported.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority and New Caledonian authorities had issued calls for nearby vessels to assist in the search.
"At 7.30am (Sydney time) on Friday the search was called off, based on expert medical advice on survival time," an AMSA spokeswoman told AAP.
A passenger, who requested not to be named, described the atmosphere on the ship as "very sad, solemn and quiet".
A Brisbane man holidaying on the ship with his family, who also requested not to be identified, told AAP conditions in the search area are rough.
Another woman on board posted to social media that she was "Feeling helpless" and "this woman who fell overboard has a husband and children on board".
The ship was on a seven-night cruise from Brisbane to the South Pacific with scheduled calls to Noumea, Lifou and Port Vila.
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