Two Southern California fishermen pulled a cruise ship pianist from the Pacific Ocean after he spent about nine hours in the water off Catalina Island — a rescue that ended with the man expected to survive. Sean Norton and Grant Garrett were fishing about 15 to 20 miles offshore on Friday when their boat’s captain spotted a person in the water, according to MyNewsLA, reporting on Monday, November 9, and Just SoCal, citing KTLA, CBS Los Angeles and the Guardian. They pulled him aboard. The man said he worked as a pianist aboard Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas, and he was in shock. Newport Beach lifeguards responded, the US Coast Guard was involved, and the man was taken to hospital, where he is expected to survive. Royal Caribbean confirmed the incident to People magazine, saying it is supporting the crew member. How he entered the water remains unclear, and the man’s name has not been released.
Nine hours in the Pacific
Nine hours in the Pacific is a long time to survive. The water off Catalina Island in November is cold enough that hypothermia is a real risk within hours, and the fact that the man was spotted at all — 15 to 20 miles offshore, by a fishing boat whose captain happened to look in the right direction — is the kind of chance that rescues turn on. The fishermen’s quick action, and the response from the lifeguards and the Coast Guard, turned a near-tragedy into a survival story. The rescue was reported on Sunday, November 8, and the details were confirmed on Monday. It is the second remarkable rescue story of the week for the site’s readers, after the lost dog found after 70 days in Alaska bear country — and it is a reminder that the sea off Southern California, for all its calm reputation, is not a place to be alone in the water.
What is not known
How the pianist entered the water is not known, and it would be wrong to speculate. Royal Caribbean has confirmed the incident and says it is supporting the crew member, but has not said how he came to be in the water, and no further details have been released. The man’s name has not been released either, and this post does not name him. For now, the story is the rescue itself: two fishermen, a captain who spotted a person in the water 15 to 20 miles offshore, and a man who survived nine hours in the Pacific and is expected to recover.
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