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Latest News...Norwegian Cruise Line today celebrates the arrival of Norwegian Aqua to her new homeport of Miami, kicking off her winter season of Caribbean cruises with calls to the Company's quintessential private island, Great Stirrup Cay. Following her first season of Bermuda sailings from New York City, Norwegian Aqua will offer guests an opportunity to embark on a variety of fun-in-the-sun cruises to the Caribbean...
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By James McCurtis Jr.Lansing State Journal
Tim Sears has been away from his religion since graduating from high school.But after falling overboard from a Carnival cruise ship and treading water for about 17 hours in the Gulf of Mexico, he has a renewed spirit."It's definitely brought me closer to my core beliefs," the 31-year-old Lansing man said Friday. "It softened me up because I was real hard toward religion and the church for a while."Sears, a sound engineer, and his friend boarded Carnival's Celebration ship in Galveston, Texas on Saturday evening.But his five-day cruise was cut short.Nine hours after eating dinner, downing a few drinks and partying in the ship's casino, Sears fell about six stories into the middle of the Gulf.He says he doesn't know how he went overboard. The last thing he remembers is walking with two women while searching for his friend.After splashing into the water, Sears became unconscious. He awakened and began swimming for his life."I was in the casino and the next thing I know, I was in the water," Sears said. "It's a total blank in my mind."It was pitch black, the water was calm, the full moon was bright and there was no land nearby.
Still, Sears says he remained calm."I did a lot of backstrokes and side strokes. I was constantly moving my legs," he said.Daylight finally came and Sears saw ships passing by. He tried swimming toward them and getting their attention, but nobody saw him in the water about 50 miles off the shore."It's very difficult to see a bobbing head in the water unless you have a trained eye," said Master Chief Tom Cowan, a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard in Washington, D.C.That's when Sears' faith kicked in. He kept asking God to send a boat."He told me he was saying, 'Please God any boat, just send any boat,' " said Jeff Sears, Tim Sears' father.Then Sears saw a cargo vessel about a mile away.He took off his yellow shirt and began waving. But again, it passed him by."At that point I was so frustrated because that was the best chance I had," Sears said.The vessel eventually stopped about half a mile after it passed and lowered a rescue boat.Three merchants inside the boat pulled Sears out of the Gulf and brought him back to the vessel.The vessel's name - Eny."I guess God sent him any boat," Jeff Sears said laughing. "It's a miracle."The Eny was en route to Port Arthur, Texas, to deliver copper. The crew members were Greek and Romanian and spoke little English, Sears said.Once on shore, the FBI and the Coast Guard interviewed Sears and authorities contacted Carnival. The cruise line, which carries 3 million passengers a year, didn't know Sears was missing because no one on the ship made a claim, said Jennifer de la Cruz, spokeswoman for Carnival.After investigating, authorities and Carnival are calling Sears' ordeal an accident."In this instance, we don't know what happened and we may never know," de la Cruz said. "It's extremely rare for somebody to go overboard."His story has captured national attention. Media outlets such as "Good Morning America," the "Today" show, major newspapers, radio and television stations in Lansing, Detroit and Grand Rapids all want to tell his story.It's one that could have had a different ending. Cowan said Sears could have easily died, instead of escaping with severe sunburn and dehydration."Mother nature can be very unforgiving," Cowan said. "He's lucky to be alive. It's not easy treading water for that long a time."Not to mention the sharks, jellyfish and other deadly critters in the Gulf, he said.Carnival didn't offer Sears a free trip but he's just happy to be home and alive, he said."It had to be an act of God, man," Sears said. "There's no other way."
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