Newport Beach fishermen find Royal Caribbean cruise ship employee treading water 20 miles offshore

Two Newport Beach fishermen found a Royal Caribbean cruise ship employee treading water nearly 20 miles from shore Friday as he returned home from a fishing trip near Catalina Island.

Sean Norton and Grant Garrett were fishing for marlin in the morning. By noon, they had rescued the man who was lying nearly 20 miles off the coast in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

“I’m like, ‘Yeah, he’s a human being. Stop the boat; let’s put all our lines in,'” Garrett said, remembering the moment the boat’s captain spotted the man in the water.

“Grant and I each took an arm and lifted it,” Norton said. “He was totally in shock.”

Garrett said that when the man came to, he told them he was a pianist on the 14-deck Royal Caribbean cruise ship called “Ovation of the Seas.”

“The only thing he said to me was, ‘Thank you. I thought I was going to die,'” Norton said.

After pulling him out of the water, the crew made an emergency marine call and a group of Newport Beach lifeguards responded to help.

“It was about 15 to 20 miles offshore, pretty much in the middle of the ocean,” Battalion Chief Adam Yacenda said. They believe he may have gone overboard the ship about nine hours before he was found.

The man, who has still not been identified, was hospitalized after the ordeal and is expected to survive, according to the US Coast Guard, which is investigating the incident and how he went overboard.

“You have this crazy year of super El Niño. This guy was in the water for probably 10 hours, but the water is 76 degrees,” Norton said. “A different year, he won’t make it.”

In a statement to CBS LA, a Royal Caribbean Group spokesperson said, “(we) are providing support and assistance to our crew member during this difficult time. To respect our employee’s privacy, we have no additional details to share.”