A 32 year-old woman traveling aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship fell overboard last Wednesday after leaning too far over the guard rail of the fourth deck while sightseeing. The height from the fourth deck to the water is estimated to be 65 feet. Her parents, reportedly traveling with her did not realize she was missing until hours later when she did not return from a stroll around the ship. Her family and more than 100 volunteers searched the ship to no avail. Police gave her parents little hope of her survival if she had fallen from the deck to the water.

Incredibly, the woman survived the fall into the icy water and drifted at sea for 38 hours without a life jacket. She reported yelling for help to other passing ships but was not heard. It was not until Friday morning that a fishing boat spotted her and rescued her. She was taken to the hospital to treat blisters on her arms from jellyfish stings and was released on Saturday.

The ship was on a five day cruise from Shanghai to South Korea and Japan.

Sources and Photo Credit:
AFP Woman Survives 38 Hours in the Sea after Falling from Cruise Ship, The Telegraph, August 16, 2016.
Woman Falls Overboard on Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship, Starts at 60, August 16, 2016.
Woman Survives Fall from Ship Which Leaves Her Drifting At Sea for 38 Hours, Mirror, August 16, 2016.