Woman Survives 38 Hours At Sea After Falling Off Cruise Ship

Finally ashore: Fan reaches dry land after her ordeal (CEN)

A cruise ship passenger has miraculously survived 38 hours at sea without a life jacket after falling overboard.

The woman, known only as Fan, fell into the East China Sea after leaning over a deck railing.

The 32-year-old Chinese woman screamed for help but, as it was late at night, no one heard her cries.

She spent the following day swimming out of the way of approaching ships so as not to be sucked underwater, and managed to rest by floating on the surface and waving her arms underwater.

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It was reported that Fan is a good swimmer who graduated from a sports university.

She was eventually spotted by a fishing vessel and rescued and after spending more than a day and a half in the water.

The incident happened while Fan enjoyed a five-day trip with her family to South Korea and Japan.

She had boarded the ship in Shanghai.

Fan was questioned after her ordeal at sea (CEN)

After she fell overboard, her desperate father tried to find her and checked the cruise ship’s surveillance cameras to find out what happened to her, but they revealed nothing.

After she was rescued, she took another fishing boat back to the mainland and was taken to a hospital for check-ups.

Fan was healthy and only suffered blisters from jellyfish stings during her time in the East China Sea.

Reports citing Chinese coastguards said Fan was lucky to survive the initial fall from the cruise ship, which has been compared to hitting the water from a six-storey high building.