Toddler Hospitalized After 10-Foot Fall on Cruise Ship

A two-year-old child was hospitalized in serious condition after falling approximately 10 feet on board the cruise ship Mein Schiff 7 while it was docked in Funchal, the capital of Portugal's Madeira archipelago, on Wednesday morning.

The incident occurred aboard the Malta-flagged vessel, operated by the Germany-based TUI Cruises, which was moored at Funchal's port for a 38-hour visit. Local reports indicated the toddler, described as a foreign national whose identity and nationality were not disclosed, was with the child's mother at the time of the fall. The child remained conscious when emergency responders arrived and did not fall into the water. Responders from the Red Cross and the Regional Integrated Medical Emergency System, including a rapid intervention medical team, boarded the ship, stabilized the toddler at the scene, and transported the child to Dr. Nélio Mendonça Hospital in Funchal. There, the child was admitted to the intensive care unit, according to hospital sources cited in local media.

TUI Cruises confirmed the incident in a statement, noting that it involved a child on board the ship in Madeira. The company emphasized that the toddler "was never in a...