Carnival Cruise Passenger Found Alive In Water After Going Overboard

The Coast Guard rescued the man in the Gulf of Mexico after he went missing the night before.
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A man who went overboard on a Carnival cruise ship this week has been rescued after being found in the Gulf of Mexico 21 hours after he had last been seen.

The 28-year-old man, who has not been identified, was a passenger on the Carnival Valor, which set out from New Orleans towards Cozumel, Mexico, on Wednesday, CNN reported. The man had been drinking at a shipboard bar with his sister, but disappeared around 11 p.m. after saying he was going to use the bathroom.

The cruise ship Carnival Valor at sea in 2015.
The cruise ship Carnival Valor at sea in 2015.
landbysea via Getty Images

His sister reported him missing the next day, and after a search of the ship was unsuccessful, the ship reversed course and contacted the Coast Guard to tell it a man was missing.

That evening, a passing merchant ship spotted the man in the water about 20 miles south of Southwest Pass, Louisiana, and alerted the Coast Guard, according to a news release from the armed services branch. A Coast Guard aircrew rescued him at 8:25 p.m.

USCG search and rescue coordinator Lt. Seth Gross told CNN that the man is now in a hospital in stable condition.

Carnival told People magazine that the company was grateful to everyone involved in the rescue.

“We greatly appreciate the efforts of all, most especially the U.S. Coast Guard and the mariner who spotted the guest in the water,” spokesperson Matt Lupoli said.

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