Princess Seaways RescueNews sources in the U.K. are reporting on the dramatic rescue of a 23 year old passenger who fell from what is being described as a cruise ferry which was heading from England to the Netherlands. 

The incident reportedly occurred, according to the Whitley Gazette, on Monday night around 9:00 PM when the young woman trying to light a cigarette near a railing.

The ship in question is the Princess Seaways which, according to the Journal Live in the U.K., was built in 1986  and is a "large cruise ferry," subsequently renovated in 2006, with the capacity for 580 cars and can more than 1,500 passengers."  

The passenger was in the water for thirty minutes.  The ship turned around and the crew rescued her and she was evaluated by the ship doctor.  

A RAF helicopter then transported the lucky passenger back to England where she was checked for hypothermia.  The video below shows the helicopter hoisting the young woman from the deck of the ferry.  

Don’t you wish that all overboards turned out like this? 

September 8, 2011 Update:  Mail Online in the U.K. has identifed the young woman as Ms. Jeni Anderson from Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, who was celebrating her graduation from Northumbria University. The newspaper quotes her as being "very, very lucky."

 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=qSMQsqpfnnE%3Frel%3D0

 
 
Video credit:  RAF via YouTube SpecialAgent08
 
Photo credit: Mail Online