Lost at Sea and Rescued 10 Hours Later

In what’s being hailed as a miracle rescue, a British woman has been pulled from the Adriatic Sea more than 10 hours after falling in. As reported by the Sunday Express, David Radas, the spokesman from the Croatian Ministry of Maritime Affairs said, “It is still not confirmed whether the British woman has fallen off or jumped from the cruising ship.”

Kay Longstaff, a former Virgin Atlantic crewmember, was found early Sunday morning by a Croatian rescue ship swimming close to where she fell in. According to The Sun, an unidentified rescue worker said Longstaff credits her survival to singing and yoga. "She said the fact that she practices yoga helped her as she was fit. And she said she was singing to not feel cold in the sea overnight,” the rescuer told the news site.

The incident was reported sometime after midnight and a search and rescue mission involving the Croatian Coast Guard and a PC-9 search plane was launched immediately.

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The ship the 46-year-old woman tumbled from was the Norwegian Star—owned and operated by Norwegian Cruise Lines. The ship, which measures a whopping 965-feet in length, has recently undergone renovations to her staterooms, public spaces, restaurants, bars and lounges.

The Norwegian Star was sailing from the Port of Vargarola, making its return to Venice, when the incident happened somewhere around Puna, Croatia. Longstaff was treated by medical professionals before being taken to a hospital in Puna.

In the end, the ships CCTV footage is what helped rescuers locate the woman. It's still uncertain as to what led her to go overboard.

The ship’s captain, Lovro Oreskovic, told the New York Times, “We were extremely happy for saving a human life.” He also stated that understandably, Longstaff was extremely exhausted after the entire ordeal.

“A report was made that a guest aboard Norwegian Star had gone overboard while the ship was returning to Venice,” said a Norwegian Cruise Line spokesman. “As soon as the report was made, the ship began a search and notified the appropriate authorities.”

The ship will be delayed in her return back to Venice, but that seems trivial in comparison to the fact that a life was remarkably saved.