Hue Pham and Hue Tran were born and raised in Vietnam, got married in 1956, and decided to escape their country during the long and devastating Vietnam War.
Their escape was not without struggles as they ended up adrift in the sea for two weeks with no food and very little water But they survived.
Pham and Tran made it to America and made a life for themselves and their children in Southern California.
By 2005, the couple was retired and living a happy life together. For Mother’s Day that year, their daughter and granddaughter gifted them a cruise vacation, in which they would join them.
Everyone was excited and looking forward to the trip.
On May 12, however, everything would change.
Their daughter found their mother’s sandals on the deck of the ship and was confused when she didn’t see her mother or father anywhere. With her shoes was the book their mother had been reading. Panic set in when she noticed her mother’s purse was also left behind.
A search of the ship turned up no sign of Pham and Tran.
They were reported missing, but missing persons on a cruise ship is a complicated matter as their family would soon discover.
The mystery continues, and to date, we have no idea where Pham and Tran are or what happened on that Cruise Ship.
Where are Hue Pham and Hue Tran?
Cruise ship disappearances are interesting because the first thought everyone has is they might have gone overboard. But how likely is that really? Perhaps if it is intentional. However, in this story, we have a retired couple, who was living a happy life, a stable life, and had future plans and travels they were looking forward to, including returning to their home country of Vietnam. Nothing about their disappearance makes a lot of sense.
Hue Pham and Hue Tran were born in the 1930s in Vietnam. They would get married in 1956 and decided that they needed to leave Vietnam due to the ongoing Vietnam War that was happening in their country.
Pham and Tran escaped Vietnam on a shipping container cargo ship. Their journey was filled with struggles and they almost didn’t make it. They spent 2 weeks adrift at sea with no food and very little fresh water access.
They did survive that trip and made it to the United States. They would reside in Southern California and raise their family there, making a good life for themselves.
They eventually retired, and Pham and Tran were enjoying life together. They were planning a trip back to Vietnam to visit relatives and see their home country and were very excited about getting back to where they were born and where they grew up.
Before this trip was to take place, Pham and Tran’s daughter and granddaughter surprised them with a Caribbean Cruise on the Carnival Cruise Ship, Destiny.
Pham and Tran would go on this 7-night cruise with their daughter and granddaughter.
The cruise would depart from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and would make its way to the Caribbean islands. Their ship would be the Carnival Cruise Ship: Destiny.
Destiny was launched in 1996 as the largest passenger ship at that time. It remained the Destiny until 2013 when it was reclassified as theSunshine.
On May 12, 2005, in the midst of this 7-day cruise, Pham and Tran were relaxing on the cruise deck. Later on, their daughter went to get them for an event, but they weren’t there. She did find her mom’s sandals and she started to look around for them thinking they couldn’t have gone too far. But then she noticed her mother’s book she had been reading and next to that, her purse. No one leaves their purse unattended, so now their daughter was quite worried.
She looked around that area of the ship, and when she couldn’t find them, she alerted cruise authorities.
While the crew started to help locate her parents on the ship, the daughter called her brother back on the mainland. Something just felt very, very wrong.
Hours would go by with no sign of Pham or Tran.
It would be four hours before the cruise ship authorities would alert the coast guard.
The first search and rescue efforts came from the Netherlands Coast Guard. Meanwhile, the ship kept on cruising. They were determined to make it to their next destination, despite pleas from the family to go back to where they were when it was discovered the couple was missing.
The ship was estimated to be in between the Caribbean islands of Aruba and Barbados at the time.
The efforts of the cruise ship were minimal, according to the family. In fact, the coast guard also called off the search after 13 hours.
But nothing made sense.
No one had seen this couple go overboard if that’s what happened.And how would thathappen?
Pham and Tran’s children said their parents were very happy. The family was doing well and thriving, they were enjoying themselves on this cruise and were very much looking forward to a trip to Vietnam soon after the cruise.
Why would they go overboard on purpose?
The cruise line closed the case as well noting that there was no evidence of foul play.
If it wasn’t foul play- then maybe an accident?
If it might have been foul play after all, what would the motive be? The purse and belongings were left behind. And what would be a motive to harm a retired couple on a cruise ship?
This one is completely baffling.
And taking a look at the area isn’t too helpful as we are in the midst of the Caribbean Sea. But, Barbados is at the southern end of the chain of islands and Aruba is 700 miles or 1100 kilometers to the west- Meaning there is quite a bit of open waters between the two islands with nothing in between.
Google Map Image of Caribbean IslandsPhoto byGoogle Maps
Michael Pham even immediately flew to the California home of his parents to go through it looking for any clues or signs they may have missed. He found nothing.
The family continued to fight Carnival Cruise Lines for answers, but Carnival wasn’t talking.They claim they did their part and that was all they needed to do.
And, since they were on International Waters when the disappearance likely happened, it seemed agencies are quick to point to others claiming it isn’t their responsibility. Something that everyone involved with cruise ship disappearances has remarked on as being an issue in these cases.
The family has pushed for legislation and laws for tougher regulation of cruise ship safety.
Michael has also gone on to become an activist through the International Cruise Victims Association.
Michael said his family needs answers, and his parents deserve it. Michael says he will continue to fight for tougher laws and regulations.
He goes on to say,
“Mom and Dad deserve that. They worked very hard since we came here 30 years ago, retired, and lived happily in Southern California. I’m not against the cruise industry, but until they admit they have a problem nothing will get done. They can’t be held accountable”
Hue Pham and Hue Tran aren’t listed in any missing person databases, and their case is classified as ‘death at sea’. However, the couple has never been found.
Around 400 people have gone missing from cruise ships since the year 2000- including guests, passengers and crew members.
I’m not only curious what your thoughts are on the case of Hue Tran and Hue Pham but what are your thoughts on cruise ship safety protocols? Do you think there needs to be a change? Or, do you think they are doing all they can do?
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