Cruise turns to adventure for local woman

Maryl Sellman, right, poses with her high school friend, Peg Robinson, aboard the luxury liner Carnival Splendor. To their right, the tugboat Chihuahua pulls the disabled ship back to port after fire crippled the vessel less than a day into a planned seven-day trip to the Mexican Riviera.

While most people bring home photographs of sandy beaches and waterfalls from their vacations, Maryl Sellman's trip included shots of tugboats, aircraft carriers and military helicopters.

The co-owner of a recreational vehicle park near the Little Camas Reservoir, she had spent the past two years saving up money to take a trip with her high school classmates during a "girls only" reunion.

But what started out as a routine, seven-day vacation last Monday turned into an adventure that made news headlines around the world.

Sellman was one of approximately 3,300 passengers sailing aboard the Carnival Splendor before a fire disabled the cruise ship about 150 miles south of San Diego.

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