The American woman who plunged from the top of a Caribbean cruise ship last week has been identified as 52-year-old Almarosa Tenorio.
Tenorio, who was traveling from Florida to Aruba on the Royal Princess, died on Tuesday after she was allegedly choked, pushed off the 16th deck and severed her leg during an altercation with a muscular man. She landed on a lifeboat nine floors below.
Her brother, Tony Rodriguez, identified his sister as the victim on Sunday, according to ABC Action News.
Tenorio, who worked as a teacher in Spanish Fort, Alabama, was described as a ‘loving daughter, sister, mom and grandmother with a good heart.’
‘Her passion was teaching and working with children. She had a vivacious personality with a smile that would light up a room. We are sad that she was taken from us at such a young age. She will be missed by all that knew her,’ Rodriguez said in a statement.
Tenorio was vacationing, reportedly with her husband, and lived with her son, who is a student at the University of Alabama.
The American woman who plunged from the top of a Caribbean cruise ship last week has been identified as 52-year-old Almarosa Tenorio, of Alabama
Tenorio was identified by her brother, who described his sister as a ‘loving daughter, sister, mom and grandmother with a good heart.’ She was reported to have lived with her son, a student at the University of Alabama
The victim plunged to her death after she was reportedly seen fighting with a muscular man on the Lido deck on the 16th floor, around 10.30pm last Tuesday. She fell from the deck at 4am, landing on deck 7 on Lifeboat 2
The FBI and Aruban authorities are currently investigating Tenorio’s death, which has been ruled ‘unnatural.’
A man believed to be Tenorio’s husband was hauled off the ship and questioned by authorities, but is not considered a suspect, despite witness accounts that the pair were seen having a volatile altercation, according to Aruba newspaper Diario.
Horrified passengers said the woman’s leg was torn off in the fall, creating a gruesome scene with glass everywhere.
The Royal Princess had embarked on an eight-day cruise around the Caribbean on November 9 and returned to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Saturday.
Passenger Logan Tignor described the horrifying incident on a video call with CBS News, saying: ‘It’s surreal and I’m kind of traumatized for it. I never would expect that it would happen on vacation.’
Photos from the scene obtained by DailyMail.com show yellow tape cordoning off the area around and below the lifeboat.
Earlier this week a spokeswoman for Aruban prosecutors confirmed to DailyMail.com that the man taken off the boat was the woman’s partner and that the woman’s death is being treated as ‘unnatural’.
Tenorio’s death has been ruled unnatural and authorities are awaiting autopsy results. She was last seen The woman crashed down onto a lifeboat and her leg was severed, according to horrified passengers, who said the scene was gruesome with glass everywhere
She was described in a statement from her brother as a ‘loving daughter, sister, mom and grandmother with a good heart,’ and a ‘passion’ for teaching
Local investigators have performed an autopsy to establish how the woman died. The FBI is also carrying out its own investigation.
The name of the victim and the man taken off the boat have not been released. No arrests have been made yet.
A source aboard the ship told DailyMail.com: ‘We are sailing the southern Caribbean. It’s the ship that [British TV station] ITV used for their show ”The Cruise”. It was two passengers they had a row in the casino that night.’
‘The gossip on board is rife. We were all woken at 4.30am by a security alert by the captain. We will be at sea for two days from today heading to Fort Lauderdale.’
A second source added: ‘We can literally see the lifeboat from our room. Blood and broken glass all over it.
Another passenger said: ‘We are on this ship too. Ten police officers came aboard. The announcement was a criminal investigation was to be conducted before we are given clearance. Two couples were asked repeatedly to go to customer relations.’
A man was hauled off a cruise ship after a woman was allegedly choked and pushed off a balcony, severing her leg after the couple reportedly had a volatile altercation during a Caribbean getaway. Pictured is the section of the ship which has been closed off by police. Circled are the police lines used to cordon off the crime scene
The man, described as being muscular, allegedly strangled the woman before tossing her from the ship’s 16th deck. Aruba investigators (pictured) are now performing an autopsy to establish if the woman was choked to death or died from the fall
The Royal Princess is pictured arriving at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday
The fight reportedly began at the ship’s casino, on the Lido deck on the 16th floor, around 10.30pm.
The woman plummeted from the deck at 4am, landing on deck 7 on Lifeboat 2.
Passenger Logan Tignor described the horrifying incident on a video call with CBS News, saying: ‘It’s surreal and I’m kind of traumatized for it. I never would expect that it would happen on vacation’
Princess Cruises said in a statement to DailyMail.com: ‘Princess Cruises can confirm that a 52-year-old American female guest passed away early yesterday morning aboard Royal Princess as the ship was enroute to Aruba.
‘It was reported to the local authorities who met and boarded the ship upon arrival. The cause of death is not yet known at this time.
‘We are deeply saddened by this incident and offer our sincere condolences to the family and those affected.’
Princess Royal departed Aruba at 10pm on Wednesday night, heading towards Kralendijk, Bonaire.
The massive cruise ship has a guest capacity of 3,600 at double occupancy.
At its launch in Southampton, England in 2013, the ship was christened by the Duchess of Cambridge, who became the vessel’s ‘godmother’.