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A woman who went overboard from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship was rescued after spending 20 hours in the water clinging to a lifebuoy, the Hellenic Coast Guard said.
The 44-year-old Salvadoran national was traveling aboard Odyssey of the Seas as it sailed through the Ionian Sea near the island of Zakynthos on Saturday, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs told USA Today.
The cargo ship MSC Rossella III was assisting in the search and spotted the woman inside the bright orange lifebuoy in dark waters. The vessel alerted authorities, and a Greek Coast Guard crew arrived to toss her ropes and pull her to safety.
CRUISE PASSENGER JUMPS FROM BALCONY AND DIES AFTER FALLING OVERBOARD INTO OCEAN
A Royal Caribbean passenger was rescued in the waters near a Greek island last week after she jumped overboard. (Hellenic Coast Guard; Getty Images)
The woman reportedly told authorities she jumped off the ship because she “wanted to disembark,” a Coast Guard spokesperson told Agence France-Presse, adding that “she was 20 hours at sea.”
Following her rescue, she was transported to the port of Katakolo and brought to a local hospital, where a prosecutor ordered a psychiatric evaluation, according to the Hellenic Coast Guard.
CARNIVAL CRUISE SHIP PASSENGER DIES AFTER FALLING FROM BALCONY – FBI INVESTIGATES HIGH-SEAS HORROR
Greek authorities reportedly deployed a Coast Guard vessel and military helicopter to search for a woman who went overboard from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. (moisseyev/Getty Images)
Fox News Digital reached out to Royal Caribbean for comment.
The incident follows a similar stunt last year when a man jumped off Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in an attempt to evade nearly $17,000 in gambling debt.
A 44-year-old woman reportedly went overboard from Royal Caribbean’s Odyssey of the Seas while the cruise ship was traveling from Greece toward Italy. (Gerard Bottino/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
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The passenger, Jey Gonzalez-Diaz, survived the jump and was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers.