On a Friday morning off the Southern California coast, two fishermen who had gone out for marlin near Catalina Island found a man treading water nearly twenty miles from shore. He was a pianist aboard Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas, and how he came to be in the Pacific remains a question now in the hands of the Coast Guard. In a story that is so often told as one of disaster, it is also a reminder of how strangers on a small boat can become the difference between a life lost in open water and one carried back to land.
Cruise ship pianist survives nine hours in Pacific after going overboard, rescued by fishermen 20 miles offshore
A cruise ship crew member fell overboard and was found in the ocean after roughly nine hours; he was hospitalized and is expected to survive.
In a different year, Norton said, there was no way he makes it.
Mark
Nine hours in open ocean, and he's expected to survive. Why is that the part people keep returning to?
Mimi
Because of where he was. Fifteen to 20 miles out, in the middle of the ocean as the battalion chief put it. The fishermen were just heading home from a marlin trip when they saw him.
Mark
And the captain nearly didn't register what he was looking at?
Mimi
Garrett's account is that the captain called it out as a person, and they stopped the boat and pulled in all their lines. Then the man thanked them and said he thought he was going to die.
Luke
Worth flagging the nine hours. Authorities say he may have been in the water about that long. That's an estimate, and Norton's own figure is closer to ten. Nobody has said exactly when he went in.
Mark
What about the warm water Norton mentions?
Mimi
He credits a super El Niño year, with the ocean at 76 degrees, and says that in a different year the man wouldn't have made it.
Luke
That's a fisherman's judgment, not a medical finding. It sounds plausible, but nothing in the reporting confirms what actually kept him alive.
Mark
Do we know how he fell?
Luke
No. The Coast Guard is investigating, and Royal Caribbean has said nothing beyond supporting him and protecting his privacy. We don't even have his name.
Mimi
What we do know is that he's alive, in hospital, and was able to say who he was and what ship he worked on.
Le Pouls
- A man who had been in the open Pacific for hours was spotted by chance, nearly twenty miles offshore, by fishermen who were already heading home.
- Nobody yet knows how a pianist from a fourteen-deck cruise ship ended up in the water, and the Coast Guard is working to find out.
- The fishermen moved quickly, stopping their boat, gathering their lines, and hauling him aboard before calling emergency responders.
- Lifeguards answered the distress call, and the man was taken to hospital, where he is expected to survive.
- Royal Caribbean says it is supporting its crew member and is offering no further details while the investigation continues.
On a Friday morning off the Southern California coast, two fishermen who had gone out for marlin near Catalina Island found a man treading water nearly twenty miles from shore. He was a pianist aboard Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas, and how he came to be in the Pacific remains a question now in the hands of the Coast Guard. In a story that is so often told as one of disaster, it is also a reminder of how strangers on a small boat can become the difference between a life lost in open water and one carried back to land.
On Friday morning, two fishermen from Newport Beach, California, were out after marlin near Catalina Island. By midday they had pulled a man from the Pacific, nearly twenty miles from shore, where he had been treading water for what authorities believe was around nine hours.
He is a pianist on Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas. His name has not been released. Sean Norton and Grant Garrett were on their way back to port when the boat's captain noticed someone in the water. Garrett said the instinct was simple: stop the boat, bring in the lines, and get him aboard. Once he had steadied himself, the man told them he played piano on the ship. He thanked them and said he had thought he would die.
The fishermen called for help, and Newport Beach lifeguards came out to assist. Norton believed the warm water, about 76 degrees during what he called a super El Niño year, helped the man survive. In a colder season, he said, the outcome might have been different.
How he went overboard is still unknown. The US Coast Guard is investigating. Royal Caribbean says it is supporting the crew member and will share nothing more out of respect for his privacy. What comes next will depend on the Coast Guard's findings and on whether the man chooses to speak once he has recovered.
On Friday morning, two fishermen from Newport Beach, California, were out after marlin near Catalina Island. By noon they had pulled a man out of the Pacific, nearly 20 miles (32km) from shore, where he had been treading water.
The man, whose name has not been released, is a pianist on Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas, a 14-deck cruise ship. He was taken to a hospital after the rescue and is expected to survive. The US Coast Guard says it is now investigating how he went overboard.
Authorities believe he may have spent roughly nine hours in the water before Sean Norton and Grant Garrett found him. The two were heading back from their fishing trip when the boat's captain spotted something in the water. Garrett recounted the moment to CBS News: the captain recognized a person, and Garrett's reaction was to tell him to stop the boat and bring in all the lines.
The fishermen worked together to get the man aboard. Once he had steadied himself, Garrett said, he explained that he was a pianist on the Ovation of the Seas. Norton said the man said little else: he thanked them and told them he had thought he was going to die.
After the rescue, the fishing crew put out an emergency maritime call, and Newport Beach lifeguards responded to assist. Battalion chief Adam Yacenda told CBS the man was found 15 to 20 miles offshore, which he described as pretty much in the middle of the ocean.
Norton believes the water itself helped explain how the man lasted so long. He pointed to what he called a super El Niño year, saying the man was probably in the water about 10 hours, but the water was 76 degrees. In a different year, Norton said, there was no way he would have made it.
How the man came to fall from the ship is still unanswered, and it remains under Coast Guard investigation. Royal Caribbean Group has acknowledged the incident. A company spokesperson told CBS the company is providing support and assistance to its crew member during a difficult time, and that to respect his privacy it has no further details to share.
What to watch for is the Coast Guard's findings on the circumstances of the fall, and whether the man or the company says more once he has recovered.
Citations marquantes
Thank you. I thought I was gonna die.— The rescued pianist, as recalled by fisherman Sean Norton
We are providing support and assistance to our crew member during this difficult time.— Royal Caribbean spokesperson, to CBS
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