Man overboard!!

[CatServants]

A couple of guesses from trying to extrapolate from duct tape's post:

 

1. If at 3 AM the crew knew somebody had gone overboard, but not who, I'm guessing that either a passenger or, more likely, a crew member observed somebody go off.

 

2. Trying to find a bobbing head in the ocean at night from the air must be nigh impossible - you're more likely to hear someone then see them. And it's impossible to hear anything from a helicopter with the engine running, so while they may have been on station very shortly after being notified, I'm not surprised they couldn't find anything. Not to mention the fuel limitations on endurance....

 

3. What really amazes me is that the ship and man remained in close enough proximity for them to eventually hear him - I would have thought that the currents would have rapidly separated him out of earshot, even with the ship stopped (which I'm guessing it was).

 

With a lot of hard work by a lot of people, and even more blind luck, this turned out well.

[dwelsh]

And it's impossible to hear anything from a helicopter with the engine running,

 

This made me smile!!! No engine running, no lift, goodbye helicopter!!!!

[stuffyah]

We were in the cabin next to the gentleman, who went overboard. This was indeed a miracle

 

I would like to correct (from my perspective) some comments on this forum; as well as some news services.

 

The Coast Guard (CG) and US territorial waters regulations were the true heroes. The Silver Shadow (SS) was obligated to stay and search by US regulations (this was made clear to the passengers over the PA system many times) . The CG had choppers and boats on site shortly after the situation was identified. When the SS officier spotted Ron yesterday; the SS launched a small boat to rescue .... they couldn't start the motor and the boat floated away uselessly ... the SS launched a tender which almost ran over the victim. Luckily the CG diver was able to help Ron out of the water.

 

How and why this happened may come out.

 

One thing for certain .... there was a significant cost associated with this incident .... emotions for the passengers and crew; CG efforts; inconvenience to fellow passengers (flight rescheduling) and the following group of passengers who were delayed boarding

[DebbieH103]

Goldens4 (Marcie) emailed me yesterday that they were being taken to the Embassy Suites after the early embarkation was canceled, and she knew what was going on. Did anyone else go there, and did they? I was not able to get thru to check.

 

This is really an amazing story.

[WesW]

short video of incident here:

 

http://luxurycruisebible.blogspot.com/2009/11/video-man-overboard-from-silversea.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LuxuryCruiseBible+%28Luxury+Cruise+Bible%29

[TLCOhio]

We were in the cabin next to the gentleman, who went overboard. This was indeed a miracle How and why this happened may come out. One thing for certain .... there was a significant cost associated with this incident .... emotions for the passengers and crew; CG efforts; inconvenience to fellow passengers (flight rescheduling) and the following group of passengers who were delayed boarding

 

THANKS for all of the details, background, reporting, video, etc.! It is a very interesting situation. Sad story, but he was lucky to survive. Will be interested in "THE REST OF THE STORY" on why and how someone goes overboard in the middle of the night. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[MuseCruiser]

Because "the rest of the story" has not yet come out, there seem to me only two (that I can think of) possibilities given that no one has been arrested or accused of pushing him.

[meow!]

The man is still alive and well, so if there is any foul play, he would have told the coast guard/police by now! The likelihood is that he was intoxicated, or dangerously careless and fell over. If it were suicide, why would he scream for help (getting cold feet after hitting the water)?

[bigmjh]

We conversed frequently with Ron and he WAS NOT DRUNK. He has a medical condition that does not tolerate alcohol and would be seen every day at the pool drinking water with mint.

 

The news wires have really screwed up the story ... unbelievable what you read in those papers!

[oregon50]

The man is still alive and well, so if there is any foul play, he would have told the coast guard/police by now! The likelihood is that he was intoxicated, or dangerously careless and fell over. If it were suicide, why would he scream for help (getting cold feet after hitting the water)?

 

Meow!....stick with the numbers, it is your great strength.

[duct tape]

As I initially stated, the seaman on watch was standing on the wing bridge and heard something going to the water. On the chance that it was a person, immediate note was made of the lat & long. The ship initiated the emergency plan for this situation and stayed on station, allowing for the current, etc, as the person in the water would probably have experienced. It is VERY dark and the flood lights from the helicopter do not cover a wide swath. It is perfectly reasonable to understand that a person in the water, unattached to anything visible, is nearly impossible to see in the dark with just about no moonlight. We heard him yelling right after dawn and the CG cutter, the helicopter and the ship were all in close proximity. Ron was not hanging onto anything when he was rescued. As to motivation, I heard that he told the investigators that he "slipped". We will never know. As someone else stated, he did not drink much and was never seen inebriated. He is safe and it is over. Let him be, speculation does not help.

[WesW]

Duct Tape, thanks for precise fidelity and your first person accounts..pls enjoy the

rest of your cruise.

[Keith1010]

Duct Tape, thank you for sharing this additional information with everyone.

 

Thank goodness that the seaman on watch was standing at the right spot at the right time. And that the passenger was rescued.

 

You are aboslutely correct. Specualation adds no value.

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post.

 

Keith

[MuseCruiser]

Totally agree with the prior two posts; DT, thank you for the information.

 

This really instills confidence in SS procedures; had the person on watch not heard that and taken immediate action, I'm afraid we would have had a terrible tragedy. Kudos to SS for responding as they did.

[wripro]

I echo the kudos to SS. I'm sure their quick reaction helped save the man's life.

[Bon.Vivant]

Thank you duct tape, stuffyah, bigmjh and whammer for sharing the facts with us and correcting some of the errors in the news reports (as well as challenging the 'blaming of the victim' attitude that came across in some of those reports). It certainly sounds like both the Coast Guard and Silversea deserve much praise for the way they responded to this emergency.

 

Cheers.

[Bon.Vivant]

And Mr. Shulman deserves respect and praise for having endured his ordeal and having made it through. I can't imagine what it must have taken to cope and keep going in that situation.

[bigmjh]

Thank you duct tape, stuffyah, bigmjh and whammer for sharing the facts with us and correcting some of the errors in the news reports (as well as challenging the 'blaming of the victim' attitude that came across in some of those reports). It certainly sounds like both the Coast Guard and Silversea deserve much praise for the way they responded to this emergency.

 

Cheers.

Having witnessed this entire ordeal first hand, it truly makes you feel more secure having seen the professional, well-practiced, beautifully executed emergency procedures put into place by the SS crew. Needless to say, the Coast Guard also performed beautifully in coordinating the search and rescue operation. It was a very touching and moving scene on board that morning ... both crew members and passengers were seen praying for a quick and successful recovery. Later, after Ron was spotted, tears came to peoples eyes as the amazing rescue took place. After 9 days together, we were family and we were watching as one of us was pulled to safety.

 

Then, of course, there were the rare, self-centered individuals whose only concern was whether they would make their connections on time in FLL! One passenger (who got a rather nasty glare from me :mad: ) wanted to know why we had to maintain the search for so long ... "... that's the Coast Guard's job." She thought an hour was "more than enough time to circle" and that we should just go on to FLL and not "inconvenience" an entire ship full of passengers! Inside I was thinking - perhaps she'd have a different opinion is SHE were the one in the water. :rolleyes: Hopefully, I will NEVER encounter her on an future cruise!

 

Well, here's a giant heap of praise for the wonderful crew of the Shadow and the brave, young men in the Coast Guard. And another giant heap of best wishes for Ron ... hoping he may quickly put this behind him and get on with his life.

[room010]

What an amazing story. It is notoriously difficult to spot someone in the water even during bright daylight, let alone when it's dark or with poor visibility so full praise to the skill of USCG and the ship's captain and crew. I'm sure they would acknowledge there was a huge chunk of luck involved too - I think Ron's guardian angel was working overtime that night.

[donaldsc]

We conversed frequently with Ron and he WAS NOT DRUNK. He has a medical condition that does not tolerate alcohol and would be seen every day at the pool drinking water with mint.

 

The news wires have really screwed up the story ... unbelievable what you read in those papers!

 

If he was not drunk or really stupid, how did he fall in the water. The railings on the ship are high and you would have to work really hard to "accidentally" fall in.

 

I get very ticked at the people who say that we should feel sorry for someone who falls overboard when it was their fault that they did it. Nobody who is reasonably careful could possibly fall overboard. They certainly should never be allowed on any cruise ship ever again.

 

DON

[meow!]

Thinking about it again, PERHAPS the victim has "sleep walking" or other diseases. Let us give him the benefit of the doubt and let this unfortunate incident pass ..

 

We echo the others in complimenting the crew and the coast guard for their persevering effort that miraculously nobody was really hurt.

[Suite Travels]

Perhaps Ron may have been taking Ambien which is dangerous even if you have had one glass of wine. I stopped taking Ambien years ago because I was sleep walking. One morning after taking Ambien the night before I woke up by our pool and did not remember how that happened.:confused: Other medications can cause memory loss and sleep walking even without alcohol.

 

The crew and CG did a great job. As for the self centered woman I would just not glare at her, she would get a piece of my mind.

[dusababy]

DUCT TAPE

I am curious - who was captain and CD during this rescue operation?

Kudos being rightfully expressed - sounds like a fantastic job - but who was in charge?

Dusababy:confused:

[TLCOhio]

As I initially stated, the seaman on watch was standing on the wing bridge and heard something going to the water. On the chance that it was a person, immediate note was made of the lat & long. The ship initiated the emergency plan for this situation and stayed on station, allowing for the current, etc, as the person in the water would probably have experienced. It is VERY dark and the flood lights from the helicopter do not cover a wide swath. It is perfectly reasonable to understand that a person in the water, unattached to anything visible, is nearly impossible to see in the dark with just about no moonlight. We heard him yelling right after dawn and the CG cutter, the helicopter and the ship were all in close proximity. Ron was not hanging onto anything when he was rescued. As to motivation, I heard that he told the investigators that he "slipped". We will never know. As someone else stated, he did not drink much and was never seen inebriated. He is safe and it is over. Let him be, speculation does not help.

 

THANKS, duct tape and others, for the excellent first-hand info and background! The "personal" touch does work and make a difference. Sounds like a really lucky and fortunate situation that Ron was noticed and rescued under these challenging situations. A video camera could not have been enough to hear and notice. Glad SS had a good plan for how to deal with these situations. Terry in Ohio

[IMac]

I believe David our cruise director was spot on with his statement when Ron was Found "A Miracle Has Just Occurred."