Cruise ship pianist who went overboard rescued after floating in the ocean for 9 hours

A cruise ship employee who spent an estimated nine hours stranded in the Pacific Ocean was rescued by two fishermen after being spotted nearly 20 miles off the California coast.

The 37-year-old man, who worked as a pianist aboard Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas, was discovered on Friday, November 6, while the ship was travelling from Long Beach to Ensenada, Mexico.

Despite spending hours alone in open water, he was still conscious when the fishermen reached him. But according to his rescuers, he feared he wouldn’t survive.

Fishermen discover cruise ship worker in middle of ocean

Sean Norton and Grant Garrett were returning from a morning fishing trip near Catalina Island when their boat’s captain noticed something unusual in the water. Realizing it was a person, Garrett immediately urged the crew to stop.

“I’m like, ‘Yeah, it’s a human being. Stop the boat; let’s get all of our lines in,’” he recalled to CBS Los Angeles. The fishermen managed to pull the man aboard, where Norton said he was in “total shock.”

“The only thing he said to me was, ‘Thank you. I thought I was gonna die,’” Norton explained.

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After bringing him to safety, the crew sent out an emergency call, prompting Newport Beach lifeguards to respond.

Authorities believe the man went overboard at around 2:30am, leaving him treading water for approximately nine hours before his rescue. Norton suggested the relatively warm water may have played a crucial role in his survival.

“This guy was in the water for probably 10 hours, but the water’s 76 degrees,” he told CBS. “A different year, no way he makes it.”

The man was taken to hospital and is expected to survive, according to the US Coast Guard.

Royal Caribbean confirmed it was supporting the employee but declined to share further details out of respect for his privacy. The Coast Guard is investigating how he ended up overboard.