James Michael Grimes’ Thanksgiving was unorthodox.
After winning an air guitar contest, he toppled off the side of a cruise ship, battled a "sea creature," treaded water for more than half a day, and survived on bamboo — or maybe just some kind of stick — until the Coast Guard picked him up the next day.
And, according to him, though alcohol was consumed, it did not play a part in the chain of events.
Mr Grimes, 28, survived a harrowing 15 hours at sea that could have turned tragic had he not managed to keep himself afloat while waves washed over him in the Gulf of Mexico.
Mr Grimes and his sister were on a Carnival cruise ship departing from New Orleans and bound for Cozumel, Mexico on 23 November. At some point that evening, Mr Grimes’ sister noticed he had left to use the restroom and had not returned. After failing to return the following day, she reported him missing and, a few hours later, the Coast Guard was notified that the man had vanished.
According to Mr Grimes, who gave an interview to ABC News’ Good Morning America about his ordeal, that night he had just won an air guitar competition in one of the ship’s lounges and had hit the bar to celebrate.
He said he did not have "tons" of drinks and that he "couldn’t really say" how much booze he had actually consumed, but assured the interviewer he was not drunk at the time.
Whatever the case, the next thing he remembers is floating around in the Gulf of Mexico without a ship in sight.
He treaded water for hours, noting during the interview that he was terrified of drowning and was desperate to see his family again.
"I wanted to see my family and I was dead set on making it out of there, you know. I was never accepting that this is it. This is going to be the end of my life," he said during the interview.
As he fought to stay above the waves, Mr Grimes claims he had an encounter with a "sea creature" that he initially worried could have been a shark. He claims the creature had a fin and bumped his leg, spooking him to the point where he felt the need to kick at the animal.
"I thought it was a shark. I mean, I was swimming in one direction and looked around I seen it out the corner of my eye and it came up on me really quick and went under and I could see it and it wasn’t a shark," he said.
He saw the fish had a "flat mouth" just before it bumped him, prompting him to kick at it.
Mr Grimes had nothing to eat or drink for the duration of his time floating in the Gulf. That’s why when a stick that he says "looked like bamboo" floated by him he scooped it up and began chewing on it. Though he has no idea if it provided any nutritional value, he did note that it at least provided the comfort of tasting something other than salt water.
He began to worry as night fell — the water’s temperature cooled, and his body was running out of energy — but he says he remained positive, believing he had survived for a reason.
"You know, the fall didn’t kill me, you know, sea creatures didn’t eat me, I felt like I was meant to get out of there," he said.
And he did; he was eventually spotted by a passing tanker, which notified the US Coast Guard rescuers. The Coast Guard units arrived on scene and, according to one rescuer, likely found Mr Grimes just in time.
Richard Hoefle, a US Coast Guard Aviation Survival Technician, told 4WWL News that Mr Grimes was "at his limit" when they found him.
"Some people break down and cry, some people are in shock, and they don’t know what’s going on, some people are ecstatic and they act a little crazy because they are so happy to be out of the situation that they’re in," Mr Hoefle said, describing typical reactions of individuals who are rescued. "Mr Grimes had nothing left. He had no energy. He had nothing left to give. My best guess is that he had between a minute and 30 seconds left before we lost him completely."
Mr Grimes said he recalled being secured by Mr Hoefle and remembers "just thinking ‘thank you, you are like a guardian angel.’"
The Coast Guard transported Mr Grimes to a hospital in New Orleans. He was treated for hypothermia and dehydration, and has since been released.
Mr Grimes told Good Morning America that the experience "opened my eyes" and taught him to be mindful of that which he takes for granted. It also left him lacking a proper cruise experience.
"I definitely would be open to go on another cruise," he said, "because I really didn’t get to go on this one."
