The vastness of the ocean makes it unlikely to be found alive after falling into the sea from a ship, but sometimes luck makes the impossible possible. That is what happened to the protagonist of a story published by the BBC and The Guardian, the pianist of a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean, found floating adrift in the sea by fishermen nine hours after falling overboard from the vessel where he was employed.
The name of the fortunate pianist has not been disclosed, but the incident occurred about 20 miles off the coast of California, in the rough Pacific Ocean. Apparently, for reasons that have not come to light, the man fell overboard from the cruise ship Ovation of the Seas.
The two fishermen who rescued him, Grant Garrett and Sean Norton, discovered him floating in the water near Catalina Island. "I thought, 'Yes, it's a human being. Stop the boat; let's pull in all our lines,'" Garrett told CBS News. "The only thing he said to me was, 'Thank you. I thought I was going to die,'" Norton added.
The man was taken to shore and placed in the custody of the Newport Beach Coast Guard, who confirmed that he was the pianist of the cruise ship Ovation of the Seas. When asked by several media outlets, the Coast Guard confirmed that "some good Samaritans rescued a conscious person from the water."