'Stupid woman!' Mother of cruise boss blasts British passenger 'who jumped' off ship and cost company $600,000 as air-hostess's father reveals party-loving daughter had been 'going through a very hard time' before ordeal

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The British air hostess who survived 10 hours floating in the Adriatic Sea after plunging from a ship has been described as a 'stupid woman' by the mother of the cruise line's president.

Kay Longstaff claimed she had fallen from the Norwegian Star off the coast of Croatia over the weekend as the ship was heading towards Venice.

But the 83-year-old mother of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) president, Andy Stuart, has since suggested Miss Longstaff, 46, must have jumped off the vessel - and said the incident had cost the firm $600,000.

The pensioner, who has not been named, said her son, 55, was 'annoyed' the firm was being wrongly blamed and highlighted the cost of delays, calling out the coastguard and the disruption caused to passengers.

'She didn't fall off. She jumped,' she told the Daily Telegraph. 'This has cost Norwegian Cruise Line $600,000. This stupid woman. I spoke to Andrew at lunchtime. What he said was "this is fake news". He said that she couldn't have fallen. You would have to take steps to climb over the railings. He said she jumped in the water'.

It comes as Ms Longstaff's father revealed she had been going through a 'hard time' in her personal life and as passengers claimed she leapt into the sea after a drunken row with her boyfriend. 

Ms Longstaff posted Facebook pictures of herself during the cruise including when the vessel docked off the Greek island of Santorini (pictured) last week

Miss Longstaff, who survived a 10 hour ordeal in the water, was allegedly described as a 'jumper' by the captain of the Norwegian Star ship on Saturday night. The air hostess plunged from the seventh deck of the 92,000-ton Norwegian Star 60 miles off the Croatian coast.

Passengers on board the ship said it would be 'impossible' to fall accidentally fall over the chest-high railings, and insisted the only way she could have ended up in the water would be if she jumped.

Her father Ron Longstaff, 76, a retired police superintendent from Kenilworth, Warwickshire, said that she had been going through a distressing period recently, but refused to give any more details.

He said last night: 'She’s (been) going through a very hard time.  She wouldn't want to be upsetting me and of course she is.' 

Mr Longstaff also revealed he only discovered his daughter was at the centre of the drama after seeing her interviewed on the television news. 

Passenger Eddie Palladino, who was on the cruise ship with his family, told the Mirror: 'We were woken up by the alarm bells going off and then there was an announcement from the captain.

'He said: "I'm calling to alert you now that we have a reported jumper off the ship and we're in a search and rescue mission."

'He didn't say anything about an accident and called her a "jumper." 

Mr Palladino added that her shirt was found on the deck of the cruise ship. 

Kay Longstaff, left and right, with the man believed to be her boyfriend, Craig Rayment

Mr Rayment, pictured with Ms Longstaff, refused to comment after she was released from a hospital in the Croatian city of Pula

American Bern Love, who was also on the ship, told The Sun: 'She didn't fall, she jumped after rowing with her boyfriend.

'There is no way she could have fallen - that railing at the back of the ship is almost six feet high. If you want to go over it you have to climb it.'

Crew member Daniel Punch said in a Facebook exchange: 'She didn't fall, she jumped. It was on my ship. I spoke [to her] throughout the whole week. She was arguing with her fella the whole time.'

Police are believed to be working on the theory that Ms Longstaff jumped and believe no foul play was involved, and Italian source told The Sun. 

The source spoke out as Ms Longstaff was released from hospital though declined to say anything about her fall. 

The former air hostess posted an image of her boyfriend Craig Rayment showing off a birthday cake on board the ship (left). The couple are shown (right) together in a photo from his Facebook page

British woman Kay Longstaff pulled from the Adriatic Sea 10 hours after falling from a cruise ship says she managed to survive the terrifying ordeal by 'singing' and her 'yoga fitness'. She is pictured smiling with her rescuers before being taken to hospital

Footage from a Croatian broadcaster showed Kay Longstaff being helped on to dry land after her 10-hour ordeal in the sea 

The Briton was pulled from the water 10 hours after she fell from a cruise ship and has spoken about her miraculous rescue

Another passenger told the paper that she had been drinking, and police had been on the ship asking which staff members had been serving her alcohol.

Last night she was labelled a ‘stupid woman’ by the mother of the liner company boss, Andrew Stuart, 55. The 83-year-old said she had spoken to her son who was in Miami, Florida, who had branded claims she fell off as 'fake news.'

She told the Daily Telegraph: ‘She didn’t fall off. She jumped. 

'This has cost Norwegian Cruise Line 600,000 dollars. This stupid woman.

'I spoke to Andrew at lunchtime. What he said was 'this is fake news.' He said that she couldn't have fallen.' 

Passengers took pictures showing a taped off area on one of the ship#'s decks. It is not yet known how exactly she came to be in the water

Another of her holiday snaps posted on Facebook shows the Norwegian Star near shore during the Mediterranean cruise last week 

The source said: 'Footage has been viewed and you can clearly see she was there on her own when she fell. She was not pushed. The theory we are working on is that she most likely jumped.'

Police have spoken to her boyfriend Craig Rayment, an electrician, who confirmed the pair had been drinking and arguing before the plunge, the source added.

After the fight he went back to their cabin before the crew informed him that Ms Longstaff was missing and they had found her bags and belongings, it is reported.

Mr Rayment refused to comment ahead of Ms Longstaff's release from a hospital in the Croatian city of Pula.

He said: 'I'm not interested in talking' before hanging up on reporters who reached him on his mobile.

A British man living at Craig's old home in the holiday resort of Benalmadena, a terraced house in a quiet cul-de-sac he used to rent, said: 'He left here about six months ago and I don't know where he moved to.

'Kay wasn't living here with him. I know Craig but I'd never met Kay. The first time I saw her was on the news today when I switched on the TV and saw she'd been rescued.'

A neighbour said: 'Craig rented next door but the blonde woman that was rescued didn't live with him. People keep themselves to themselves round here but I remember him and never saw her.'

Another acquaintance added: 'I knew Craig was in a long-term relationship but I'd never met his girlfriend.

'He used to work on the oil rigs doing two weeks on and two weeks off and last time I saw him he was talking about going back to work on them.'

It comes after a friend of Ms Longstaff said that she had a 'troubled past'. The 46-year-old, who does not wish to be named, said that he was 'very worried' about the Briton, who remains in hospital but is expected to be discharged today.

Passengers have claimed Ms Longstaff, who lives in Benalmádena on Spain's Costa del Sol, had argued with friends before going overboard. MailOnline had earlier revealed how she plunged into the water after spending the evening drinking and left her handbag and passport on board. 

British air hostess Kay Longstaff, 46, who now lives on the Costa del Sol, survived 10 hours in the water after falling from the Norwegian Star

Ms Longstaff posted Facebook pictures of herself during the cruise including when the vessel docked off the Greek island of Santorini. 

She also posted a picture of Mr Rayment showing off a birthday cake.

She was rescued after 10 hours in the sea with crew saying she managed to survive the terrifying ordeal by 'singing' and her 'yoga fitness'. 

The rescue ship's captain, Lovro Oreskovic, said that the Briton was exhausted and staff were 'extremely happy for saving a human life'.

'It is a real miracle that she is alive,' Oreskovic said today. 'On the cruiser ship they thought she is not. It's obvious that she's very fit.Luckily for her we saw her immediately because she raised and waved her hands when she saw us.'

It is not yet clear how she came to be in the 25C water, but Ms Longstaff says she 'fell off' the back of the ship. Her disappearance at about midnight local time triggered a frantic search by the crew after the alarm was raised.

The ship doubled back to the sea area where she was thought to be and carried out at least four passes in its search for the missing woman, before a coastguard cutter and Pilatus PC-9 spotter plane joined the hunt and found her at about 9.45am yesterday.

Ms Longstaff, pictured smiling with her rescuers after being hauled from the sea, revealed: 'I fell off the back of the Norwegian Star, and was in the water for ten hours. Then these wonderful guys rescued me.'

Cruise ship safety railings are designed to prevent people from falling overboard while decks are routinely monitored by CCTV cameras.

Irena Hrstic, a spokeswoman for the hospital in Pula, confirmed that Ms Longstaff is being 'assessed for stress' but is 'physically fine'.

'She is excitedly waiting for her boyfriend to come and take her home,' Hrstic said.

One of the crew who rescued her said: 'She said the fact that she practises yoga helped her as she was fit. And she said she was singing to not feel cold in the sea overnight.' 

The British tourist used to work as cabin crew for Virgin Atlantic and now works on private planes.

A friend wrote on her Facebook page: 'So pleased you're OK and your strength got you through that horrid ordeal. Bless you... so pleased you are OK darling.'

Ms Longstaff (pictured sat with her rescuers) said 'I fell of the back of the back of the Norwegian Star, and was in the water for ten hours. Then these wonderful guys rescued me' in a TV interview

Another said: 'OMG Kay! So glad you're OK, I couldn't believe my eyes.'  

Ms Longstaff told Croatian television she was 'lucky to be alive' and it is not yet known how she managed to survive all night in the water or if she had help staying afloat from a life ring. Other passengers who were on the liner said the incident had been captured on the 17-year-old ship's CCTV system.

Norwegian Star had been heading back to Venice at the end of a seven-night eastern Mediterranean voyage taking in Kotor, Montenegro and the Greek islands when the drama unfolded.

A Derbyshire businessman who was on board told the Daily Mail as passengers waited to disembark yesterday: 'We heard she was in a cabin on her own but had been travelling with family and friends. They raised the alarm when they realised she was missing. The ship turned around at about 2am and went back to the area where she fell. Coastguards found her at about midday local time today.'

The 46-year-old air hostess fell from the seventh deck of the huge cruise ship around 60 miles off the coast of Croatia 

The passenger, who asked not to be named, said ship staff had used metal barriers to seal off the area where she is said to have fallen.

'We were told she had left her handbag, which contained her passport, on the deck before falling, and that the incident was captured on CCTV,' he added. 'Apparently she had been drinking.' 

Another passenger told the Sun that Ms Longstaff had been involved in arguments throughout the day.

'When getting off the boat, seven hours late, a number of passengers were saying there had been a midnight dispute amongst the Longstaff party,' the passenger said. 

Ms Longstaff is pictured speaking to Croatian TV after she apparently fell at around midnight on Saturday 

Kay Longstaff, centre, who survived for ten hours having fallen off the Norwegian Star cruise liner into the Adriatic Sea

Ms Longstaff is pictured left with a friend before her terrifying ordeal when she was left in the Adriatic sea for 10 hours 

Ms Longstaff is understood to be in hospital today as she recovers from her ordeal. She is pictured (centre) partying with friends in the Spanish resort of Marbella

Others spoke of chaos as the liner ran into delays - and hit out at Norwegian Cruise Line for failing to help international passengers with their onward travel once the ship had eventually docked at about 2.30pm. 

One, called Bethany, told MailOnline: 'The cruise line was very unhelpful with helping us rebook travel plans. The only thing they gave us was 15 minutes of free WiFi to try and rebook travel arrangements. They also started a number system to get to the very few phones they did have available to use - they handed out numbers 1 (to about) 16 but only got up to number 6 while my family was number 13. 

'Disembarkation was also a mess because they did not give any information regarding when we were getting off the ship. We had to sit around for hours just waiting for vague instructions.'

She said that after 4am, she noticed 'we were going faster than usual' - supposedly when the vessel was making its way back to where Ms Longstaff had fallen.  

'The captain made an announcement at around 6am saying a passenger went overboard and we were searching for her. I would say we spent about 3-5 hours searching for her until the captain said he was going to suspend the search and leave it for the Croatian search and rescue teams. 

'He then said we would arrive in Venice at around 2:30pm but we did not get off the ship until 5pm.

'At around 4am I noticed we were going faster than usual and believed that was when we were traveling back to where she was thought to have fallen. My brother said he saw spot lights out our cabin window at around 5am.'

Commenting on the railing around the ship, she said it would be 'rather difficult to get over' adding: 'I am 5ft 5ins and the railing went to about my chest.'

The ship should have berthed in Venice at 8am but did not arrive until the afternoon, by which point Ms Longstaff had returned by sea to Pula, northern Croatia, and had been taken to hospital.

She was found about a mile from where she fell in and was brought to safety after 10 hours when rescuers pulled her out of the sea and gave her emergency medical help. The British Embassy is said to be aware of the situation.

A Croatian government spokesperson said the cruise ship staff would look at CCTV to find out how the British tourist had fallen into the sea. It was still not confirmed whether she fell or jumped, it was reported. 

David Radas, from the Croatian ministry of maritime affairs, said Ms Longstaff was 'extremely fortunate to be alive'

'The Crew on board the cruise liner originally had doubts that she would survive but she was picked up alive. 

'She was waving her arms in the air and calling out when the coastguard first reached her. She was very relived to be saved.'

Earlier, he told the Daily Telegraph that Ms Longstaff was 'not injured, just exhausted, hypothermic and in shock'.

'When they reached the coast, she felt pretty much recovered. That was also confirmed by the hospital staff after they conducted a preliminary health check'. 

Friends posted on the 46-year-old British tourist's Facebook page to express their relief that she had survived the ordeal 

A search was quickly launched using the Croatian Coast Guard patrol ship 'Cavtat' and an airplane PC-9 to look for the missing woman in the water

A passenger calling herself Seafoam Sally, who started a thread on the incident on the cruisecritic.com web forum, said passengers were informed just after 6am yesterday that a passenger had gone overboard overnight.

She added: 'Around 8am the captain notified us that he was suspending the search and rescue and heading back to Venice, but the Croatian coastguard would take over.' 

The Croatian rescue ship was scrambled from the port of Vargarola and found her swimming 1,400 yards from where she was believed to have fallen overboard. 

According to survival expert Mike Tipton, the water was warm and calm on the night Ms Longstaff went overbaord - factors that would have been in her favour. He said it was possible to survive in 20C water for up to about 25 hours.

'The problem is keeping your airway clear of the water. In this particular case there was a fair amount of swimming being done, but because there was a female involved, they have higher levels of body fat and are more able to float,' he told BBC Radio 4.

'The luckiest thing was they were able to find her. It really would have been like looking for a needle in a haystack.'

The rescue mission would have been like 'looking for a needle in a haystack' but he added: 'Being female she is going to have about ten per cent more body fat than a man so she is going to be able to float.'

The circumstances of the incident are being investigated and the British embassy in Croatia was informed.

According to the Cruise Lines International Association, man overboard cases are not common - but there are no official statistics on the annual number. 

Its report said last year: 'Without exception, when investigations of MOB incidents are successfully concluded it is found that they were the result of an intentional or reckless act'.  

Rescue services at the scene after the British woman spent more than 10 hours in the water

The British woman was rescued after falling off the cruise ship Norwegian Star (file photo) 

A Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson said: 'In the morning of August 19, a guest went overboard as Norwegian Star made her way to Venice. 

'The Coast Guard was notified and a search and rescue operation ensued. We are pleased to advise that the guest was found alive, is currently in stable condition, and has been taken ashore in Croatia for further treatment. 

'We are very happy that the individual, who is a UK resident, is now safe and will soon be reunited with friends and family. 

They declined to comment on claims from fellow guests that the passenger had been filmed on CCTV falling from the ship.

The firm said that it was working to assist guests whose onward travel plans had been affected by the ship's late return to port in Venice. 

The cruise line's website says the ship was recently refurbished and travels on round trips to the Caribbean, South America, the Mexican Riviera and the Panama Canal. 

It is said to feature '15 delicious dining options, 10 bars and lounges, a sprawling spa, an always-exciting casino with VIP area, plus tonnes of fun for kids of every age'.

Deck seven, where the air hostess is said to have fallen from, is thought to house a theatre and at least five bars or cafes. 

Last month, a Norwegian Cruise worker was 'miraculously' rescued after 22 hours in the Atlantic without a life-jacket. Francis Rakochi Santiago, a Filipino cleaner on the Norwegian Getaway, was plucked out of the Atlantic Ocean after spending 22 hours in the water without a safety device before a Carnival Cruise Line ship found him.

Party-loving past and tangled love life of ship plunge Briton Kay Longstaff... and the father who says: ‘She’s been going through a very hard time’ 

By Andy Dolan, Tom Witherow and James Tozer for the Daily Mail

Kay Longstaff had recently been through a ‘hard time’ in her personal life before her cruise ship ordeal, her father said last night.

Ron Longstaff, a retired senior police officer, revealed he discovered his daughter was at the centre of the drama only after seeing her interviewed on the television news.

The pensioner spoke out about his daughter’s miraculous survival yesterday as she was discharged from hospital in Pula, Croatia – as speculation mounted over how she ended up 60 miles offshore in the Adriatic in the early hours of Sunday.

Kay Longstaff had recently been through a ‘hard time’ in her personal life before her cruise ship ordeal, her father said last night

A source close to the rescue operation said she had suffered a facial injury hitting the water, and was at the point of giving up when she was saved by Croatian coastguards at Sunday lunchtime.

Miss Longstaff – who friends said had struggled to get over the death of her mother when she was a teenager – told Croatian television after being brought ashore that she ‘fell off’ the back of the ship and was ‘lucky to be alive’.

But passengers on the 92,000-ton Norwegian Star claimed Miss Longstaff, said by friends to be a party-lover, had been drinking and arguing with her partner in the hours before the incident.

And a crew member suggested the 46-year-old may have jumped after scaling railings on the edge of the deck.

Daniel Punch said Miss Longstaff was unlikely to have fallen by accident, writing on Facebook: ‘She didn’t fall, she jumped. It was on my ship. I spoke [to her] throughout the whole week. She was arguing with her fella the whole time.’

Passengers had previously said they were told the incident had been captured on the ship’s CCTV and showed that Miss Longstaff was on her own when she went over the edge.

The Italian authorities appeared to corroborate that yesterday, when they said she ‘most likely jumped’ after apparently rowing with her boyfriend.

‘Officers spoke with the woman’s partner on the ship when it arrived in Venice,’ a spokesman told The Sun. ‘The footage has been viewed and you can clearly see she was there on her own when she fell.

‘The boyfriend said they had been drinking and they had quarrelled. He went back to his cabin and left her. The next thing he knew he was woken by the crew to say they thought she was missing as they had found her bag and belongings.’

By then, the ship – which had been heading back to Venice – had doubled back on itself to search for her.

A spokesman for the Croatian ministry of maritime affairs said that by checking CCTV rescuers knew the exact moment Miss Longstaff fell in the water. ‘Because they knew the time, they were able to know the exact position of the ship,’ he said.

One passenger said a concierge had claimed Miss Longstaff and her boyfriend had been arguing prior to her disappearance, while another said: ‘When getting off the boat, seven hours late, a number of passengers were saying there had been a midnight dispute among the Longstaff party.’

Miss Longstaff is believed to be in a relationship with electrician Craig Rayment, who she met after moving to Torrequebrada, near Malaga, Spain, in summer 2016.

Mr Rayment turned 43 while the Norwegian Star was at sea on a tour which took in Kotor, Dubrovnik, Santorini and other Greek Islands, before returning to port in Venice on Sunday afternoon.

Miss Longstaff’s 76-year-old father said the air hostess had been through a distressing period recently, but would not elaborate.

Mr Longstaff, a retired police superintendent from Kenilworth, Warwickshire, added: ‘She’s (been) going through a very hard time. She wouldn’t want to be upsetting me and of course she is.’ He added that he was pleased he had not found out that his daughter had fallen overboard until after she had been saved.

Three months after setting up home in Torrequebrada with her long-term boyfriend Luke Hopkins (pictured), Miss Longstaff dumped him after seven years – leaving the retail manager heartbroken

A source with knowledge of the rescue operation said: ‘She had hypothermia and a haematoma on her right cheek from where she hit the water. It has been officially recorded as an accident, she has taken responsibility for not being careful enough.

‘It was at the very moment that she thought she wouldn’t survive, that was when the boat arrived to save her.’

Miss Longstaff spent Sunday night at Pula General Hospital for observations and was reunited with Mr Rayment yesterday. Dr Irene Hrstic, medical director of the hospital, confirmed the patient had been checked for signs of stress after her ordeal.

‘I’m so surprised that she is OK after being in the sea for ten hours,’ Dr Hrstic said.

‘The main thing that can happen is acute stress that anyone can experience after a night in the sea. That’s why we’re observing her.

‘The biggest danger in the sea is to be frozen and go unconscious or have a heart attack. Now she’s in a good psychiatric condition.’

A source said of the reunion between Miss Longstaff and Mr Rayment: ‘It was emotional, full of love.’ The pair later left the hospital by a rear exit.

Miss Longstaff had long harboured an ambition to live abroad and moved to Spain after growing tired of the British climate. She secured a job with private jet operator NetJets.

Former Premier League footballer Bastian Schweinsteiger, Formula 1 drivers and the socialite Tamara Ecclestone are said to have been among the clients she has looked after.

But three months after setting up home in Torrequebrada with her long-term boyfriend Luke Hopkins, Miss Longstaff dumped him after seven years – leaving the retail manager heartbroken. Maureen Hopkins told the Daily Mail her son, 45, had given up his job and sold his car in order to follow Miss Longstaff abroad, only for her to end the relationship after telling him: ‘I love you but I’m not in love with you.’

Mrs Hopkins, who lives in Honeybourne, Worcestershire, added: ‘I was very fond of Kay. She broke my heart too when she ended things with Luke.

‘I’ve been watching this drama on the news but even when I heard her name this morning it didn’t click that it was the Kay I knew. I’m just glad she survived.’

Her son declined to comment yesterday.

Miss Longstaff and Mr Hopkins had previously lived in a rented property in the Worcestershire village of Offenham – where neighbours said she struggled to adapt to quiet village life – and then Cheltenham.

A friend said Miss Longstaff, a former Virgin Atlantic stewardess, ‘loves to socialise and would never miss the opportunity for a night out or a drink’.

But the source added: ‘She lost her mother to cancer when she was 14 or 15 and it affected her a lot. She has struggled to come to terms with it and I think it has led her to suffer from bouts of depression or anxiety.’

A former neighbour added: ‘Kay was excited to get the job working on the private jets.

‘She was on call a lot and had to fly off at the drop of a hat, but she said she wasn’t allowed to talk about the firm’s clients. I’m just amazed she has been through an ordeal like this. It’s not her time (to go), that’s for sure.’

Career-orientated Miss Longstaff grew up in Sutton Coldfield, outside Birmingham, and has a large extended family in the area.

Relatives contacted by the Mail yesterday said she did not keep in touch often.

The high-flyer once turned down a boyfriend’s proposal of marriage and told friends she was not interested in settling down or having children – with her only tie being a pet hamster she keeps at her Spanish residence.

An expatriate friend had been detailed to feed the animal while Miss Longstaff was away.