Cruise ship worker rescued 22 hours after falling overboard
A cruise ship worked who fell overboard has been miraculously rescued by another passing cruise ship.
The 33-year-old man, who was working for Norwegian Cruise Line, is in a stable condition after reportedly treading water for 22 hours to stay alive.
According to the US Coast Guard, the worker went overboard at around 3.20 pm local time on Saturday, 45 kilometres north west of Pinar del Rio, Cuba.
The man fell off the Norwegian Getaway and was rescued by Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Glory.
“It was nothing short of miraculous,” president of Carnival Cruise Line, Christine Duffy, said in a statement.
The search for the man was suspended on Saturday evening, but a cabin steward from the Carnival Glory spotted him in the water at around 1.20 pm on Sunday.
Carnival spokeswoman AnnMarie Matthews said the man did not have any safety device on when he was rescued and they “can only surmise that he was likely treading water the entire time”.
“Kudos to the Carnival Glory team for this amazing effort to rescue a fellow seafarer,” Ms Duffy said.
Speaking to CBS Miami, US Coast Guard spokesman Jonathan Lally said: "The Carnival Glory had found someone in the water waving their arms and they rescued him and he was the missing Norwegian Getaway crew member and that was roughly about 21 miles north of Cuba.”
Norwegian said in a statement that the line is “extremely thankful” to Carnival Cruise line.
“We are so happy to know that the individual is safe and will soon be reunited with friends and family,” the Norwegian statement said.