Teen Falls To His Death While Trying To Climb Onto Cruise Ship Balcony

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A 16-year-old boy fell to his death on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship last week. Florida officials said that Laurent Mercer was trying to access his stateroom by climbing onto the balcony from an adjacent room because he forgot his room key.

Mercer, who is from the Wallis and Futuna Islands in the South Pacific was on Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas with his family for vacation. The ship was docked at Labadee, Haiti when he attempted to climb into his eighth-floor room. During the climb, he lost his footing and fell to the pier below.

"The ship’s medical team responded to the pier and attempted CPR, but the [boy] had sustained major head trauma and he was pronounced dead," the Broward Medical Examiner’s Office said in a statement.

According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinal, witnesses described the shocking scene on social media.

On a Facebook thread, a poster named Jaclyn Syroney wrote: “I was on the cruise and saw him hit the concrete dock. It was around 11:30 a.m. The workers were amazingly fast acting and tried to keep him alive, but I’m pretty sure he was dead on impact. There were also fast acting of removing his body and covering up the area so people wouldn’t see it. Royal Caribbean handled this situation with utmost respect for the passenger and the family.”

Royal Caribbean issued a brief statement saying that they "are saddened by the loss of one of our guests in a tragic accident."

Wallis and Futuna Islands. I will have to Google that.

Very sad. I can't even imagine the pain

I look at what I did as a teen and wonder how I survived. I did equally as stupid things.

I guess it was easier than asking the purser for assistance.

Last time he’ll make that mistake.

When one is 16 y/o they are indestructible.....until they are not!!

I grieve for the parents--it must be terrible for them. And one can wish that the young man did not have to pay so dearly for his tragic misjudgment. Although I was not as daring in my youth as this teen was, I knew a great many who were, and thankfully, they were luckier.

flashguy

People who live on a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean go on a cruise?

I see the young boy’s death really hit you hard

Parkour!

I would call this a tragedy. The teen likely didn't appreciate the risk and it cost him his life. Perhaps the teen thought he was over water.

Darwin winners seem to downplay risk and take the chance anyway.

quote:

Perhaps the teen thought he was over water.

They should have built that pier somewhere else.

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Originally posted by Hobbs:

quote:

Perhaps the teen thought he was over water.

They should have built that pier somewhere else.

True, but sometimes there are gaps between the pier and boat. Or it may have been on the side away from the pier.

Regardless, tragic.

As a teen you don’t expect to fail in such endeavors. My girlfriend lost a son at 16 to heart failure. The pain it has caused her is beyond belief. It’s practically insurmountable. I feel worse for the parents than the child. I have kids in that age range and can’t imagine going through something like that.

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Originally posted by Mars_Attacks:
People who live on a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean go on a cruise?

To Haiti no less.

Wow, the Harmony of the Seas is the world's largest cruise ship.

There must have been an "Oh S**t!" moment where he realized this was a bad idea.

I tend to celebrate "Darwin" when it involves adults. Sometimes kids, but only when they are involved in truly evil deeds like fighting a police officer or trying to harm an innocent.

I take no joy in a death like this. My condolences to his family.

Weren't you guys ever 16? Never did anything really stupid because you thought you were indestructible? There should be an award for any adult who thinks this story is funny.

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Originally posted by justjoe:
Weren't you guys ever 16? Never did anything really stupid because you thought you were indestructible? There should be an award for any adult who thinks this story is funny.

Seriously, tough crowd. A few left turns instead of right when I was around this age and i'd be long gone.

Teenagers do stupid things, sometimes you don't get a do-over. It's still a sad thing.