Michael Mankamyer
Cruise Ship Passenger Overboard Survives 8 Hours In Ocean
Carnvial Cruise Lines Glory - March 16, 2007
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is looking for a man who fell overboard off the Carnival Glory on March 16, 2006 around 12:30am.
Witnesses say they saw the man running, he went through a window, and fell about sixty feet into the ocean below.
The vessel was about 30 miles off the coast of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida at the time of the incident.
The cruise ship alerted authorities at 12:45 a.m.
The Glory and another cruise ship joined a helicopter and the Coast
Guard cutter Vigorous in searching for the man, the Coast Guard said.
Another helicopter is en route.
Update: March 16, 2007 12:25pm CST
The man missing overboard has been identified as Michael Mankamyer. At 8:45am EST the man has been found alive after being in the water for eight hours, by search and rescue teams. The search was conducted by the cruise ship, another cruise ship called the Disney Magic, the Coast Guard cutters Chandeleur and Vigorous and a helicopter.
Coast Guard Petty Officer Dana Warr says his agency received a call from the captain’s staff of the cruise ship Carnival Glory about 12:45am, reporting Mankamyer had jumped from the balcony in his room.
"It's pretty miraculous that he's still alive," Warr said. "It's not that it doesn't happen, but it's few and far between when we're trying to find someone that jumps from a cruise ship."
Warr said Mankamyer had no floatation device or other safety gear on him when he fell 60 feet. They do not know yet how he managed to survive.
Coast Guard rescuers aboard the 110-foot U.S. Coast Guard cutter Chandeleur saw Michael Mankamyer, of Orlando, waving his arms and screaming for help about 8:45, said spokesman Petty Officer 1st Class Dana Warr. He'd been in the choppy water around eight hours after he was reported overboard. He drifted about 20 miles with the Gulf Stream in 70 degree water.
Lt. Marcus Canady flew the helicopter and Petty Officer Howat Will pulled Mankamyer out of the water. Will jumped into the water from 15 feet up and found Mankamyer in "pretty good shape."
After Mankamyer was found, he was transported later Friday morning to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he’s listed in good condition but suffering from mild hypothermia.
Michael Mankamyer
Event Date: March 15, 2007
Submitted by: Tamara Lush,
Miami New Times
Bruise: Overboard
Bruise Location: 30 Miles Off Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Age: 35
Home Town: Orlando, Florida
Details:
As you can see in the photo to the left, he was in good enough condition to stand up as he was transferred from the rescue basket to a hospital stretcher.
He is the man with no shirt on, wearing black shorts, in the middle of coast guard members and hospital workers,
Carnival said Glory was on a seven-day cruise that departed Port Canaveral on March 10.
This is the second time a young man has been rescued after a prolonged period of time in the ocean, through the night. The other case is here
Update: March 19, 2007
Mankamyer, from Orlando, Florida, an MRI technician at Florida Hospital in Orlando, had been on a weeklong Caribbean cruise with his 16-year-old godson Salvie Wega. The cruise was gift to Salvie (Sal) Wega for his 16th birthday. They had a cabin on the seventh story of the ship.
Salvie Wega says that he and Mankamyer got into an argument, that escalated into violence, over a disagreement involving shipboard activities.
Ultimately, they ended up on the floor rubbling, and Wega called security.
"They handcuffed me, they bumped my head -- I have a big bump on my head and they tried to accuse me of murder," Wega said.
Wega says he went to the cabin door when he heard a knock, and that Mankamyer dove out the cabin window. He says he tried to stop him, and cut his finger.
This case continues on Page two, see the links below.
Case Details: 1 2
Cruise Line: Carnival Cruise Lines
Ship: Carnival Glory
Built: 2003
Refurbished: N/A
Registry: Panama
Size: 110,000 tons
Length: 952 feet
Passengers: 2,976
Crew: 1,150
Florida Webcams > Here
