A woman managed to hold on to a lifebuoy for nearly 20 hours before being rescued after allegedly leaping from a cruise ship.
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The 44-year-old Salvadoran woman was on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship called The Odyssey of the Seas, which was traveling near the island of Zakynthos in Greece on Oct. 9, according to CBS News. She apparently grabbed a lifebuoy ring and jumped overboard, later telling her rescuers she "wanted to disembark," per a Greek coast guard spokesperson. "She was 20 hours at sea," they added.
Shortly after the cruise ship was alerted to the woman going overboard, rescue efforts were launched. Two Coast Guard boats and a Navy helicopter, along with The Odyssey of the Seas, scoured the area in search of the woman. Meanwhile, all other vessels nearby were forced to reroute.
Eventually, a passing freighter noticed the woman floating in an orange lifebuoy early on the morning of Oct. 10. She was reportedly alert as she sat adrift in the dark waters.
A Greek coast guard patrol boat soon came by to rescue the woman.
The Greek coast guard released footage of their rescue efforts. The brief clip shows the seemingly calm woman inside the ring lifebuoy as her rescuers shine a spotlight on her. They shout an order to her over a loudspeaker, then cast a line to her from the patrol boat, which she manages to catch. Finally, her rescuers begin reeling her toward the boat.
According to CBS News, the woman was then taken to a nearby hospital in the Greek city of Pyrgos. There, she underwent psychiatric evaluation and other health tests.
Another Person Went Overboard From a Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Last Year
The incident follows a similar one involving a Royal Caribbean cruise ship from September of last year. However, this case of a passenger going overboard allegedly has a more clear-cut reason.
Jey Gonzalez-Diaz reportedly leapt from the cruise ship near the Port of San Juan after reportedly racking up more than $16,000 in gambling debt. The man allegedly went overboard just as a U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspection was underway.
In this case, a friendly passerby on a jet ski took the overboard cruise ship passenger to shore.
However, the law eventually caught up with the man. He was reportedly charged with "attempting to avoid monetary reporting requirements when traveling into the U.S.," per CBS News.
