Disappearance of Cameron Robbins / Jumping Off Ship

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About

The Disappearance of Cameron Robbins, also known as Cameron Robbins Jumping Off Ship or Cameron Robbins Overboard, refers to the aftermath of a May 2023 viral video (purportedly posted to Snapchat) showing Baton Rouge, Louisiana student Cameron Robbins jumping off a boat ride (or cruise ship) in the Bahamas after reportedly being dared to do so by his friends onboard that night. After jumping into the dark water, Robbins went missing and was searched for by the U.S. Coast Guard and local Bahamian authorities. However, the search for Robbins was called off before the end of May. The video of Robbins jumping off the ship led to mass discourse on TikTok, Twitter and elsewhere online. Many theories were brought to light about what supposedly happened to Robbins as people speculated on his disappearance. The most prevalent theory was that he was attacked by a shark soon after going overboard.

History

On May 24th, 2023, 18-year-old Cameron Robbins went missing after reportedly jumping off of a sunset cruise near Nassau, Bahamas.^[1] Robbins was on vacation with friends just days after graduating from University Lab School (U-High) in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.^[1] He was reportedly dared by his friends to make the jump.^[1] On May 25th, the official Twitter^[2] account of the U.S. Coast Guard Southeast (USCGSoutheast) posted a tweet about the missing person. Two days later, on May 27th, the Coast Guard then released a statement^[3] that they'd officially called off the search, failing to locate him.

On the night Robbins jumped from the boat, a video was taken by someone onboard the ship of him in the water. NBC News^[4] reported that it was posted on Snapchat. On May 29th, 2023, the video was posted by TikToker^[5] @_kimbra_, gaining roughly 8.7 million plays and 503,200 likes in three days (shown below). Others on TikTok^[6] also posted the video, gaining millions of plays as it went viral.

@_kimbra_ ⚠️TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️ Cameron Robbins, 18, was dared to jump off the cruise ship he was on. he disappeared into the water and has yet to be found. They called off the search today 5/28/22 prayers to his family, friends, classmates, and all who are affected. #batonrouge #cruiseship #cameronrobbins ♬ original sound – Kímbra

Online Reactions

On May 29th, 2023, a plethora of reactions to the Cameron Robbins' story surfaced on social media, a majority of which surfaced on TikTok due to the viral sharing of the Snapchat video on the platform. For instance, on May 29th, TikToker^[7] @crimetimeteatime posted a video about the situation, gaining roughly 5 million plays and 360,700 likes in three days (shown below, left). On June 1st, TikToker^[8] @brycenswne posted a video that put the situation into a simpler perspective, gaining roughly 300,000 plays and 45,800 likes in less than a day (shown below, right).

@crimetimeteatime 18yr old missing after jumping off boat on a dare #cameronrobbins #headlinenews #crimetimeteatime #bahamas #cruise #uscoastguard #royalbahamasdefenceforce ♬ original sound – crimetimeteatime

@brycenswne When your drunk and something bad happens like this it immediately makes you wake up and realize whats going on. That was never a friend. #cameronrobbins #fyp ♬ Never felt so alone – ୨୧

Shark Attack Theory

Around the same time in late May 2023, various TikTokers started to theorize that Cameron Robbins might have been attacked by a shark after jumping off the boat. For instance, on May 30th, 2023, TikToker^[6] @theirrelevantpost posted a video in which they highlighted what they believed was a shark fin in the water of the Snapchat video, gaining roughly 4.1 million plays and 130,700 likes in two days (shown below).

@theirrelevantpost Cameron Robbins was dared to jump off a sunset boat ride at 9:40pm. After jumping in the water, a shark fin appears within 20ft of him, and you can see him look at it with panic. He immediately swims away from the shark, and lifesaver, unfortunately never being found again. 🙏 #cameronrobbins #prayer #foryou ♬ original sound – Mr. Irrelevant

Others on the app, such as TikToker^[9] @bonafidebrunette, compared what was visible in the Snapchat video to a shark attack pattern in daylight, furthering the theory that Robbins was purportedly attacked by a shark and ultimately justifying the absence of his body being discovered. However, no official statement was released on the likelihood of a shark attack, so the theory remains mere speculation.