TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – A Tallahassee man on a cruise ship near Cuba experienced an earthquake Monday that shook the vessel for about 20 seconds, causing items to fall and passengers to grab onto nearby objects.
Joe Millender was napping aboard the Margaritaville Islander when the shaking woke him around 2 p.m. The ship was traveling to Cozumel when the earthquake struck.
“The ship started shaking and things falling off the shelves and people kind of grabbing hold of things trying to hold on,” Millender said.
Millender said passengers initially thought the ship had run aground or hit something with a propeller. The captain announced after the shaking stopped, informing passengers that an earthquake had occurred almost directly underneath their ship.
The ship’s location was within 20 to 25 miles of the earthquake’s epicenter, according to Millender.
Millender, who grew up in Carrabelle and has been on boats most of his life, said he had never experienced anything like it. He explained to WCTV that he had been on more than 45 cruises.
“I can only assume that it felt like you were on land in a building,” Millender said.
Millender described the earthquake as a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
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