John Tredrea

By: centraljersey.com
When TJ Imbrigiotta and his fiancee Adrienne D’Souza embarked on a Mediterranean cruise aboard the Brilliance of the Seas a few weeks ago, they didn’t expect to get what may prove to be the wild est ride of their lives – the kind of ride one reads about in seagoing stories by Joseph Conrad or Herman Melville.
Mr. Imbrigiotta’s first name is Thomas, but he’s been called TJ since he was a boy. He grew up in Hopewell Township with his folks, Thomas and Jeanne Imbrigiotta and his brother Nick. He graduated from Central High School in 1999.
But back to the ride.
"We started encountering some thunderstorms and bad weather while in Rhodes, Greece," Mr. Imbrigiotta wrote his parents in an e-mail. "Apparently, they get over 300 days of sunshine a year so this was a bit strange. The bad weather followed us on the Mediterranean while we traveled from Rhodes to Egypt. It continually built until we were in a pretty bad situation. We hit 90 mph winds and 35-foot seas."
With the ship rolling like crazy, many of those on board who didn’t have their sea legs weren’t feeling so well. "Over half of the cruise ship is seasick, including Adrienne," Mr. Imbrigiotta wrote. "I suppose I could have been a fisherman because I feel fine. Outside of Alexandria, our Egyptian port, we encountered a traffic jam of ships waiting to enter the closed harbor. Our captain was forced to decrease speed and change course to avoid the many jogging tankers."
Then came a real minute-and-a-half of nightmare, as the rough seas did their worst at about 3 a.m. – of all hours.
"We took about 90 straight seconds of 15 degree rolls – that’s a lot – at 3 a.m.," Mr. Imbrigiotta said. "Everything in our cabin and on the ship went flying back and forth. It’s what I picture an earthquake feeling like. Adrienne and I were sliding back and forth across our room on our bed. Many of the common areas on the ship are destroyed. Broken glass, holes in the walls, etc. Almost all of the glasses and plates in the dining areas are broken."
Only about 30 of the 2,100 passengers on board were hurt, NBC Nightly News reported, and all those injuries were minor.
The cruise’s stop in Egypt was canceled and the Brilliance of the Seas spent two days in Malta instead. The ship encountered more rough weather on the way there – 70 mph winds – but the worst was over, Mr. Imbrigiotta said.
Mr. Imbrigiotta is a 2003 graduate of James Madison University. Ms. D’Souza grew up in Roanoke, Va. They live in Arlington, Va.