Cruise passenger goes overboard - and is only found in the sea 15 hours later
Created: 11/27/2022, 10:42 p.m
By: Stefanie Fischhaber
A 28-year-old passenger disembarked from a cruise ship.
He was only found 15 hours later.
(Iconic image) © Imago/Maciej Olszewski
A cruise ship passenger fell overboard in the Gulf of Mexico.
For 15 hours the man was in the cold sea.
A major search operation saved his life.
New Orleans - A man from New Orleans experienced a true Thanksgiving miracle last week.
The 28-year-old fell overboard on a cruise and was only found 15 hours later.
A major search operation in the Gulf of Mexico saved his life.
Passenger is lost on a cruise ship in a major search operation in the Gulf of Mexico
On Wednesday (November 23), a 28-year-old American man boarded a Carnival Valor cruise from New Orleans with his sister.
As the US broadcaster
CNN
reports, the passenger disappeared around 11 p.m.
After not showing up all night, his sister finally reported him missing around noon the next day.
A search operation was launched on the ship and at sea.
The Coast Guard then received a call from the cruise ship around 2:30 p.m., Coast Guard Lieutenant Phillip VanderWeit told
CNN
in a statement.
The search was eventually expanded to include helicopter search parties from the air.
The Coast Guard also received support from Florida, New Orleans and Alabama.
Cruise passenger falls off board: rescue workers find him hypothermic and dehydrated
"All seafarers in the Gulf were alerted and the Coast Guard used "all available resources," Lt. Seth Gross, USCG search and rescue coordinator, told the channel.
To aid in the search, the Carnival Valor retraced her route and eventually turned back.
"The search spanned more than 200 miles in the Gulf," Gross said.
The water temperatures at that time were just 70 degrees Farenheit - the equivalent of around 21 degrees Celsius.
The missing person was then found by a helicopter team at around 8:25 p.m., floating in the Gulf of Mexico.
The 28-year-old was taken to the airport by helicopter and then to the hospital.
"He was able to give his name and confirmed that he was the person who fell overboard," Gross said.
The missing person showed signs of hypothermia, shock and dehydration but was able to walk and communicate.
28-year-old survives 15 hours in the sea: "Thanksgiving miracle"
When and how the 28-year-old fell overboard, he could not give the authorities a clear answer.
However, Gross assumes that the passenger was in the water for around 15 hours.
If it's been that long, it's "the absolute longest I've heard of — and just one of those Thanksgiving miracles," the lieutenant told
CNN
.
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Just a few months ago, a holidaymaker fell off a cruise ship off Mallorca.
The woman could no longer be saved
.
(sf)