The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Deputy Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamian youngster who fell to her death on a cruise ship in Miami was described as a "happy, straight A student" whose family now want answers about how she came to die.

Damien Fox, Zion Smith's great uncle, told ABC's Local 10 News the family was struggling to come to terms with the situation, adding they were hoping to obtain surveillance video from Carnival Cruise Lines to get a better idea of how Zion managed to plunge two storeys to her death. He said the family also intended to retain an attorney.

Zion, her baby brother, mother and her boyfriend along with his family, had been on a seven-day cruise aboard the Carnival Glory when it arrived in Port Miami around 8.15am Saturday. Zion fell from a landing on to the ship's lower deck, landing between a chair and a table on the hard ground below.

She was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Centre where she was pronounced dead.

The ship was scheduled to leave Florida at 4pm on Saturday for the Bahamas.

Tragedy

"We are here in Miami to find answers to find out what happened aboard the ship," Mr Fox told ABC in an interview outside of the trauma centre where Zion's mother and cousin were said to have been admitted for medical care due to stress related conditions brought on by the tragedy.

"She was a straight A student.

"She loved us. She always run about. A happy kid," Mr Fox added.

"(An) eight year old, she hasn't started life yet. So we are saddened.

"We just need some justice and we need some answers. Once we get that we can move forward."

ABC reported relatives who were on board the ship believe that passengers getting out of a crowded elevator shoving their way out may have been to blame for her falling over the railing.

One passenger on board the Glory told ABC he attempted to help Zion immediately after she fell.

Pulse

He said: "I went running down and I checked for a pulse. She had no pulse. I did CPR until the doctor showed up."

Another person present at the time said: "If she had landed on the couch she would have had a chance."

The circumstances surrounding the child's fatal fall remain unclear. Investigators are said to be working closely with the cruise line to try to establish exactly how the tragedy happened.

Miami Fire Rescue Captain Ignatius Carroll said while the exact distance the girl fell had not been determined, it could have been anywhere between six and 15 metres, or 20 to 50 feet.

"All we know right now is that an eight-year-old girl was injured on the ship, life saving efforts were performed by Miami Dade Fire Rescue, and when the City arrived we assisted and we brought her here to the trauma centre in extremely critical condition," Capt Carroll said in an interview with Local 10 WPLG.

Carnival released a brief statement expressing condolences to the girl's family, stating: "Our most heartfelt care and concern is with the family at this very difficult time."