The passenger who went overboard from a cruise ship off the coast of Mexico last week has been identified as a 56-year-old father of three from Southern California.

Thomas Gigler was reportedly celebrating his 15th wedding anniversary with his wife, Michelle, 48, when he disappeared from the Carnival Panorama on Saturday. The incident occurred on the final day of the ship’s seven-night cruise along the Baja California peninsula.

Gigler, a longtime computer programmer at Esri, lived in Redlands, east of Los Angeles, with his wife and their three sons, who are 9, 11 and 13, according to the Daily Mail.

His family raised the alarm after he went missing, but he has not been found.

Gigler’s sister, Wendy Dowden, told the Daily Mail that the family could not understand why he went overboard.

The couple’s 15th wedding anniversary was due to fall on Wednesday, September 23, according to the report.

Tommy McGraw, 55, a passenger from Kentucky who was aboard the ship when Gigler disappeared, told The Independent that passengers were instructed to return to their rooms while crew members searched the ship and conducted accountability checks.

McGraw said passengers were initially told only that a family had reported a loved one missing. He said guests remained in their rooms for about two hours while crew members carried out searches.

According to McGraw, the captain announced that crew members needed everyone in their staterooms so they could search the decks and conduct room-to-room checks using passenger identification cards.

After reviewing surveillance footage, the captain later announced that a passenger had jumped overboard. The ship then turned around before continuing its journey toward California.

McGraw said passengers created a makeshift memorial for Gigler, leaving toy ducks, notes and other small tributes aboard the ship while crew members supported his family.

Toy ducks are commonly exchanged among cruise passengers, who hide them around ships for other guests to find. Some are customized with passengers’ names, cruise dates, ship names and hometowns.

A Carnival Cruise Line spokesperson confirmed that a male passenger aboard the Carnival Panorama went overboard while the vessel was traveling from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to Long Beach, California.

The company said its crew immediately began search and investigation procedures after being notified that a passenger was missing. Those measures included reviewing CCTV footage and notifying the U.S. and Mexican coast guards.

Carnival said it was providing support to Gigler’s family, who were traveling with him at the time.

Authorities and search teams have continued efforts related to the missing passenger, but Gigler had not been located at the time of the report.

SOURCE: The Independent, James C. Reynolds, September 23, 2026. Additional information attributed to the Daily Mail, Fox News and passenger Tommy McGraw.