http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...070201784.html
Middle school science teacher Scott Durbin of Rockville apparently had spent Sunday evening drinking with friends aboard Carnival's Liberty cruise ship off the coast of Boca Raton, Fla., when he went onto the deck of the 3,500-passenger vessel.
Then, said FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela, Durbin "got into a life raft and took the ax and started to cut through the ropes."
When a security officer tried to get him out, Durbin jumped.
Overboard.
That's 36 feet down from a moving ship.
"It's like hitting concrete when you hit the water," Coast Guard spokesman Luis Diaz said.
The ship's crew threw life rings and jackets. A Coast Guard cutter, which was nine miles away, reached him about an hour later.
"This person is very fortunate," Diaz said. "The rescue was almost immediate, and that was to his benefit."
Durbin, 28, who works at Robert Frost Middle School, was taken to a hospital in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Diaz said. He could not be reached for comment.
His grandfather, Wayne Durbin Sr. of Bakerton, Pa., said that he had not spoken to his grandson but that he believed he was fine.
"I guess he's all right, the way I understand it," Wayne Durbin said. "He's pretty well shook up, but . . . he's all right."
Montgomery County schools spokesman Brian Edwards said he could not confirm that Scott Durbin was on the ship, but he said Durbin has taught sixth- and seventh-grade science at Robert Frost in Rockville since 2002. Durbin is starting a new job as a student-support specialist, an entry-level administrative position in which he will deal with disciplinary matters, Edwards said.
"He was a really nice teacher," said Jordie Halevy, 15, who had him as a teacher in the sixth grade. "Overall, nobody really had any problems with him. It doesn't seem like him."
The ship had left Fort Lauderdale on Sunday afternoon for a six-day cruise to Freeport in the Bahamas, according to a statement from Carnival Cruise Lines.
About 11:30 p.m., Coast Guard officials received a call that a man had jumped from a cruise ship. When they arrived, they found Durbin in the water 50 miles east of Boca Raton.
There have been three other cases of people falling or jumping overboard from ships in South Florida waters since March, Diaz said. Two of the incidents apparently involved alcohol. On Sunday morning, an 18-year-old man died after jumping from the cruise line's Ecstasy ship sailing from Texas to Mexico.
In a statement, Carnival said that it encourages responsible drinking from guests and that its bartenders are trained to recognize signs of intoxication.
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I am the editor, but I also speculate, ask questions and play devil's advocate. I reserve the right to change my mind.
He jumps into a life laft and starts trying to cut the cables holding it with an axe. When a crewmember tries to stop him he jumps into the sea.
This is a science teacher????????????
What has happened these last few months on cruise ships - has all the negative publicity started attracting more & more crazies??? It was never like this in the my day.
Have people started leaving their brains at home when they cruise?
Is Carnival going to have to start giving IQ tests?
By the way, the report says he will NOT have to pay for his rescue. But I believe he should. Write your congressman!
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I am the editor, but I also speculate, ask questions and play devil's advocate. I reserve the right to change my mind.
Idiots like this have got to be made responsible for paying for their rescue! I mean they had boats and a helicopter. What do they charge on land for a helicopter emergency evacuation? In Phoenix with our mountains, climbers have to some $10,000 if they get into a spot where they need a helicopter rescue, and they are already in the vicinity - they don't have to find them first.
It is insane what these people are doing.
And I am sorry to say it, but even the people attempting suicide. A friend of mine as a joke wrote up a waiver for them to sign that says "I know what I am doing, please do not ruin the vacations of everyone else and spend $10,000s+ looking for me. This is the path I have chosen, I know what I am doing."
It is written tongue in cheek, but there is a truth to it. If they are doing it on purpose they are saying they don't want the rescue. I know deep down they do... (but).
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I am the editor, but I also speculate, ask questions and play devil's advocate. I reserve the right to change my mind.
that is just plain stupid. I agree with you Paul that this idiot should have to pay some sort of restituition for damages done. Is is going to come down to the cruiselines hiring bouncers and people to escort drunks back to their staterooms?
I'm still trying to figure out why they bothered to rescue this idiot.
Laura
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“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.“
---Mark Twain
I'm still trying to figure out why they bothered to rescue this idiot.
Stupidity, drunkenness, mental illness and just being a jerk, without directly harming someone else, still are not punishable by death. It is one of the things that makes us human. They are usually punishable by high fines, charges and other ramifications.
Take care,
Mike
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"There is a great difference between being well traveled and just having been to many places." ~Me
And probably in some sort of mental distress as well. No one in their right mind does something like this. I don't care how drunk they are. My guess is he was also battling some form of depression or other mental imbalance, which contributed to his outrageous behavior.
I agree with you, though. If he has the resources, he should be forced to reimburse for all costs of his rescue.
I'm still trying to figure out why they bothered to rescue this idiot.
Stupidity, drunkenness, mental illness and just being a jerk, without directly harming someone else, still are not punishable by death. It is one of the things that makes us human. They are usually punishable by high fines, charges and other ramifications.
Take care,
Mike
If working in a middle school won't drive you over the edge, I don't know what will. Maybe that's why school teachers [and police officers] are the two professions most represented among customers of swingers' clubs and porn shops. So if you are concerned about who is minding your kids, who do you call? The cops? Oops.
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I'm still trying to figure out why they bothered to rescue this idiot.
Stupidity, drunkenness, mental illness and just being a jerk, without directly harming someone else, still are not punishable by death. It is one of the things that makes us human. They are usually punishable by high fines, charges and other ramifications.
Take care,
Mike
If working in a middle school won't drive you over the edge, I don't know what will. Maybe that's why school teachers [and police officers] are the two professions most represented among customers of swingers' clubs and deadend shops. So if you are concerned about who is minding your kids, who do you call? The cops? Oops.
My job will! I work daily with the developmentally disabled and people with behavioral challenges in situations that can be very dangerous. It is one of the jobs that has been recently recognised as high risk for developing depression. I have been doing this work for years. I have yet to try to throw myself overboard. Instead I use my cruises to relax and make me feel better. Perhaps the difference is that am I wiser about alcohol consumption.
Laura
__________________
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.“
---Mark Twain
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Man jumps from cruise - drunk and obnoxious!
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