Harbor pilot falls overboard near Emerald Princess cruise ship in Kauai on ‘man leave’ warning
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Cruise passengers expecting to visit Kauai, Hawaii, this week faced a “person riding on the water” warning.
The Emerald Princess was due to enter port in Nāwiliwili Harbor on the southeast side of the island on Feb 10. As the ship approached, the harbormaster who was climbing a rope ladder on the pilot boat next to the ship slipped and fell overboard, according to Kauai Now and other accounts.
“Terrifying situation off the coast of Kaua’i [Princess Cruises] Emerald Princess, “user whereswaltertravel – also known as travel agent and founder Walter Biscardi Jr. from Florida – wrote in an Instagram post Feb. 10.
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“Our pilot slipped on the ladder trying to board the ship in very bad weather,” he added. Biscardi was a passenger on the cruise.
Eyewitnesses said the pilot tried several times to board the ship during rough seas before it broke down.
Passengers on a Hawaiian cruise like the one above were surprised when the harbormaster slipped while boarding the small boat and fell into the water. (James D. Morgan)
Another passenger said the porter fell about 10 to 20 meters from the top of the ship, not next to it.
Crews on the boat worked quickly to rescue the pilot. The video shows the man being brought back to the small boat within minutes.
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He appears to be unharmed, according to Cruise Hive.
“Fortunately, the boat crew managed to find him safely,” Biscardi wrote on Instagram.
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“Our port call is being withdrawn … but nothing important when it comes to a life and death situation.”
After a cruise in Kauai was canceled due to an emergency, he moved on to Maui – where the ship was scheduled to call on the next port of call.
Due to the emergency, the ship’s passengers never disembarked at the port in Kauai. (Patrick Pleu)
“We thank God for a quick recovery and a well-trained team… [the harbor pilot] he’s fine and good,” a passenger told Cruise Hive.
“I am surprised [at] How [the] Emerald’s well-trained and efficient staff handled everything quickly and professionally. Well done, crew.”
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Princess Cruise Line for comment.
The 3,090-passenger ship left Los Angeles on Feb. 4 on a 16-night Hawaii cruise, with Kauai scheduled as the first port call.
Trish Walters of Portland, Oregon, another passenger, recounted the terrifying incident on social media.
Responding to her husband’s Facebook post, she expressed how beautiful the water was that day.
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“It’s very windy — and scary,” Walters wrote.
“We could see the breakwaters of Kaua’i harbor, but the ship needed a lot of space to enter the harbor; the wind was pushing us well, so the captain and the harbor people decided it was too dangerous to try.”
The crew on the boat managed to retrieve the driver from the port during the terrifying incident. (Patrick Pleul)
Strong winds caused large waves to break along the island’s coastline, according to Cruise Hive.
The National Weather Service recently issued a high-level advisory.
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“We will come back to visit another day,” said Biscardi.
“Thank you for pilot safety and the work all pilots do to help make our cruises enjoyable.”
