The Search for Kevin McGrath
When Kevin did not come to breakfast on September 4, his family searched the ship. The ship’s crew also conducted an extensive search, according to a statement from Carnival at the time, but was unable to find him. Carnival also confirmed in the statement that Kevin “was not detected by surveillance systems, including U.S. Customs and Border Patrol during the debarkation process.”
A report was made to the U.S. Coast Guard, which conducted a helicopter search that lasted over 80 hours and spanned 3,300 square nautical miles. Miami-Dade Police, Fire Rescue and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission supported the search, but they came up with no results.
Police officers investigated Kevin’s disappearance, finding no information on his whereabouts in surveillance footage or overboard alters. The department distributed missing persons fliers, asking anyone with information about Kevin to contact them.
His father, Sean, told WPEC that Kevin could not have left the ship because he did not scan a card needed to exit the vessel, and his parents had his birth certificate, driver’s license and other documents needed to disembark. Sean was told by Carnival that they had sensors all around the ship which would alert them if someone went overboard, he said. Kevin’s sister, Danielle, told Local 10 News her brother is a father to two kids and would never purposefully disappear.
On September 7, 2023, the Coast Guard ended its search for Kevin, but his case remained open with the police.
Cruise Ship Disappearances
President of International Cruise Victims (ICV) Jamie Barnett, whose daughter Ashley died on a cruise at the age of 25, tells A&E Crime + Investigation that the number of cases like Kevin’s that her nonprofit is contacted about is growing because of increased public awareness around the issue.
The 2025 docuseries Amy Bradley Is Missing, about the disappearance of a 23-year-old woman from a cruise in 1998, brought a level of attention to the issue that Barnett rarely sees. “We had call after call, after email after email from victims,” Barnett says. “The things that broke my heart the most were these folks that have been holding on to the pain and desolation of events that happened to them on cruise ships years ago because they felt like they had nowhere to turn."
The Push for Safety On Board
Barnett fought for the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act (CVSSA), signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2010, which mandates cruise railings be at least 42 inches above the deck, on-deck video surveillance and an emergency sound system, and requires ships report serious crimes that occur on their ships, among other regulations.
The act asks that ships integrate technology, if available, to take photos of or detect passengers who have fallen overboard. The ship Kevin was on had CCTV cameras onboard, but maritime lawyer Jim Walker tells A&E Crime + Investigation that these are not actively monitored and do have blind spots.
Barnett believes that cruise ships do not have as many CCTV cameras positioned where they should be, saying they are needed, “so that when somebody like Kevin McGrath goes missing, you know where they last were seen and when.”
Carnival Cruise Line did not respond to A&E Crime + Investigation’s request for comment.
The more advanced automatic man overboard system should be standard on cruises, Walker says, citing cruise lines like Disney and MSC Cruises that have the system in place on some ships. Generally, MOBs have motion detection systems that detect a person going overboard, and infrared and radar technology that can track the person in the water.
“Every minute that you don't know the person went overboard and then every minute that you don't know where they went overboard widens the search area,” Barnett says.
The nonprofit Barett represents endorsed a Congressional bill called the Cruise Passenger Protection Act (CPPA), which legislators say, aims to ensure that passengers know their rights before setting sail, expands crime reporting, updates standards and improves enforcement.
There were gaps in the wording of CVSSA that let the cruise industry’s attorneys interpret the act differently, Barnett says, “The CPPA is meant to augment and strengthen the CVSSA.”
Kevin was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black shorts and gray sneakers.
“Kevin, please, wherever you are, I need you home safely,” Danielle said in an interview with WPBF. “We love you, we miss you and we cannot take this.”
