20 Hours After Falling Overboard, Cruise Passenger Is Rescued Near Greece
- Woman takes Royal Caribbean's 'anytime disembarkation' way too literally, goes overboard near Greece.
- Cruise line management apparently unaware for 3 hours that a passenger had turned into flotsam.
- Rescued after 20-hour solo ocean retreat; claims motive was simple: 'wanted to disembark.'
- Greek coast guard proves again they're the only ones on duty in the Ionian Sea.
- Odyssey of the Seas: Now featuring spontaneous passenger jettison for those who skip the buffet line.
Brief Summary
In a stunning display of both passenger initiative and cruise ship oversight, a 44-year-old Salvadoran woman decided to bypass the gangway entirely, taking a direct plunge into the Ionian Sea from the Royal Caribbean’s Odyssey of the Seas. The ship’s captain, apparently operating on a 'see no evil' policy, took a leisurely three hours to notice one of his paying customers had upgraded her vacation to a survival expedition.
Why This Matters
For you, the average cruiser, this serves as a grim reminder that your 'unlimited drinks package' doesn’t cover a 20-hour float in international waters, and that 'disembarkation tours' should be booked through official channels. More importantly, it highlights the alarming gap in onboard headcounts—if a passenger can vanish for three hours without a blip, just imagine what's happening to your luggage.