Merrian Lynn Carver was 40 when she boarded the Celebrity Mercury in Seattle on August 27, 2004, for a seven-day Alaskan cruise. She was seen by her cabin attendant on August 28 and then disappeared; there is no record of her disembarking at any of the ship’s port calls. The cruise ended in Vancouver on September 3, and Merrian never took her scheduled flight home. Her family reported her missing on September 7 after being unable to reach her.

Early investigative steps were hindered by delays and conflicting accounts from the cruise line. Her father, Kendall Carver, learned of the voyage only after checking her credit card records; the cruise line reportedly took three days to confirm she had been a passenger. A cabin steward allegedly noticed her absence for five days and reported it, but was told to disregard it. Belongings were packed away at voyage end and some items reportedly donated. Surveillance footage that might have been helpful was erased before investigators obtained it; later depositions indicated footage had been retained for a month, not three days as first stated.

The family pursued private investigators, lawyers, and a lawsuit that raised questions about passenger safety and the ship’s handling of a missing passenger. The investigation remains unsolved. Does anyone who sailed on the Mercury that week or worked aboard remember Merrian or noticed anything unusual during the voyage?