Cruise News Carnival Passenger falls overboard in Tampa

I guess some people will never learn - I write this after hearing that a passenger fell overboard on Carnival Cruise Lines ship the Inspiration on approach to Tampa. The passenger was eventually was rescued by one of the port's pilot vessels. 

Carnival says the incident happened as the 2,052-passenger Carnival Inspiration was approaching Tampa's port channel at the end of a four-night voyage to Mexico. The passenger told authorities he had been climbing on a railing for a better view when he slipped, the line says. 

Nobody on the ship immediately reported the passenger missing, and Carnival reportedly wasn't aware of the incident until it got word of the rescue.   

"A male individual was seen in the water holding on to a pilot marker," the line says in a statement sent to USA TODAY. "The individual, who was subsequently identified as a guest from the Carnival Inspiration, was taken to a local hospital where he is being treated for his injuries."

U.S. Coast Guard officials report the passenger's name is Larry Miller and that he is 46 years old.

Carnival says that upon learning of the situation this morning officers on the Carnival Inspiration notified appropriate authorities including the U.S. Coast Guard and the FBI. 

"The guest told authorities that he climbed up on a railing to get a better view of the pilot boat when he slipped and fell overboard," the statement notes. "The incident remains under investigation."

This is a cruise blog entry by Phil