Carnival cruise ship returns to Long Beach as crews search for woman who went overboard

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- A cruise ship that set sail to Ensenada, Mexico, from Long Beach that was carrying a woman who went overboard is back as the search for the woman continues.

According to officials, a woman in her 20s was reported missing from the Carnival Miracle cruise ship at around 3:30 a.m.

Carnival officials later confirmed one of the ship's guests went overboard from the balcony of her stateroom.

U.S. Coast Guard personnel joined the Mexican Navy Saturday in the search after the incident, which happened about 35 miles off the Ensenada coast. At 10:30 a.m., after a 31-hour search effort, Coast Guard officials said crews are standing down as they wait for additional information.

The FBI waited for the ship to dock in Long Beach to assist in the investigation and search efforts.

Meanwhile, Eyewitness News spoke with a passenger who was startled by the announcement early Saturday morning.

"About 3 a.m., we were awakened by a general announcement across the ship with a warning going, 'Man overboard! Man overboard! Man overboard!'" recalled Daniel Miranda. "So the ship has been given limited information. They told us we were stuck looking for the lady, and then they called us to clear us up. The crew's been very tight-lipped and of course, they've had different areas of the ship that have cordoned off for their search when they were searching."

The Coast Guard said on Twitter that an MH-60 Jayhawk was involved in the search over ocean waters.

The incident remains under investigation.

City News Service contributed to this report.