Cruise Ship Passenger Who Fell Overboard Talks About Ordeal
(CNN) – When James Michael Grimes fell overboard from a Carnival cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico, he said the sheer will to live, along with strength from God, kept him alive as he miraculously swam for what he believes was more than 15 hours.Grimes, 28, who described himself as an “average guy” who likes hunting, fishing, and being outdoors, was rescued late on Thanksgiving Day and told CNN he is “blessed to be here.”The Alabama native was onboard the Carnival Valor with 18 members of his family for the week of the Thanksgiving holiday.
It was the night before Thanksgiving when Grimes, who was at an onboard bar with his sister, went to use a restroom around 11 p.m., his sister recalled, according to a Carnival statement to CNN.The last thing he remembers before regaining consciousness in the water was going to listen to live music aboard the ship with family, he said, and he doesn’t remember where, or how, he fell off the ship.
He’d had drinks on the Valor, but says he was not inebriated, Grimes told ABC earlier.“I was trying to stay as positive as I could from the moment I came to… I can just remember right then thinking, ‘Wow, it’s a miracle that I’m not already dead,’” Grimes said.Grimes said he is not capable of floating, and credited his survival to his faith and positive attitude, adding he even created songs to keep his spirits up.He swam through two schools of jellyfish and watched the sun rise during his time in the water, and said he lost almost 20 pounds during the experience.“The lord gave me the will to live.
It’s a miracle,” he told CNN. “I wasn’t going to give up at any point in time, just say, ‘This is it, this is the end.’ It never came to that.
