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Carnival Cruise Ship Rescues Men and Cat
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Three men and a cat were rescued from their Florida-based boat by the Carnival Valor cruise ship, after sending out a distress signal about 12 miles off the coast of Cuba.
"They were shining mirrors to let us know they were in distress," says Carl Ray, a cruise ship passenger who managed to capture the dramatic weekend rescue on video.
"Their boat started spinning, and they had another little dinghy boat that was attached to their boat, and so it was kind of whipping them around, says another passenger, describing the rescue to WSVN news.
The boat, the Naples, Fla.-based Wasafiri, was en route to Mexico from Key West, when it got into trouble.
"The rope and that toe-eye tangled up in one propeller which seriously limited our power, and it eventually got tangled in our rudder," owner Wes Demott, who was onboard with two friends, tells NBC-2.
Demott, who lived on the boat, says he likely won't see the vessel or any of his belongings again, but he says he's thankful to be back on dry land.
The men and cat were all taken onboard the Valor, according to Carnival Cruise Lines. No one was injured in the incident.
"At the end of the day it is just stuff. Valuable stuff, but stuff," Demott says.
In an odd coincidence, there are reports Demott is a fiction writer who was working on a book about a man rescued at sea by a cruise ship.
Carnival says in a statement the Valor was returning to the Port of Miami from a seven-day Caribbean cruise when it received the distress call and came to the small craft's rescue. The cruise ship later returned to port as scheduled.
(Fran Golden contributed to this report.)
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Photo, BrentOzar, flickr
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Hello, Wes DeMott here. I'm very grateful to Carnival for saving us, and by the way I am a "real" boater with thousands of open water miles. It just so happened that on that day reality and the weather forecast didn't match up. Even the ship's staff captain said they were surprised by the 50 mph winds. I'd turned to run downwind to a small port in Cuba but when Wasafiri surfed down a wave it pulled out the dinghy tow-eye. I managed to get to the dink with a rope that I ran through the two-foot hole in the hull, which is why it's there in the video. I tried to swim under and free the rudder but my crew wouldn't let me because of the risk. Also, there's some mention of a book I wrote, but it only has a one-page bit (posted on my website) about a guy left behind by a cruise ship (not rescued). I mentioned the irony to the reporter after the interview but it made its way to the press and public. Hope that clears things up, and thanks for all of your concern. Wes
January 24 2011 at 10:23 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWhat in the world was the poor cat taken on that boat in the first place? I hate when people put their dogs on boats too. There can always be that chance of something happening especially twelve miles off land. I can tell you one thing, that cat probably didn't want to be out there to begin with.
January 24 2011 at 8:22 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI was also on the Valor, and even our ship was rocking and rolling. It would have been suicide to tie a rope around him and jump in the water as J Turton suggested. Besides the rough seas, the cold water would have caused hypothermia to set in rather quickly. As for being a "real boater," the boat was one of the men's home, so I guess he knew at least something...just saying.
A cheer went up on the Valor when they were rescued!!
He had no business being in the water. A real boater would not have been there. Thats like driving a semi without driving a car. A real boater would have avoided that type of situation from happening and nothing was said about how he tried to fix the situation. LIke turning off the engine, attaching a safty line or rope to yourself and going under the boat to cut the rope that was twisted in the prop. Thats my thought. He was a stupid boater that should have kept his boat tied to the dock.
January 24 2011 at 6:27 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI was on that ship when the rescue happened and i can tell you the wind and waves were really picking up that day. The three men and the cat should be very grateful the ship picked them up. It definetly was no set up!
January 24 2011 at 4:03 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI'll speak for the kitty. "Meow, meow, meow" Thanks cruiseship. Can I be your mascot. I will kill all the mice on board. I'll earn my keep.
January 24 2011 at 6:45 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyYou barely see the cat.
January 24 2011 at 3:31 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyPretty sure this is a set up, AND he was wishing for anything OTHER THAN a Carnival ship. I wonder if they got half off on their stateroom?
January 24 2011 at 2:26 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWell, where is the picture of the kitty and who has it now?
January 24 2011 at 6:43 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHot 5 Deals
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