Celebrity Cruise captain explains how her crew maneuvered their massive ship in rough conditions to rescue a boat of migrants in distress

• Two cruise ships rescued over 20 migrants in distress off the coast of Florida earlier this week.
• Celebrity Cruise captain Kate McCue shared a video documenting the experience on social media.

Celebrity Cruise captain Kate McCue explained how her crew was able to rescue a small boat of 19 migrants off the coast of Florida earlier this week in a video posted to social media.

She said the the ship's Chief Officer Nikos "noticed a glimmer on the horizon" and discovered it was a group of people who appeared to be in distress.

"We were traveling at 15 knots, so I turned the ship around for a reciprocal course while we gathered all of our resources," McCue said in the video. "Because of the rough sea conditions, I needed to maneuver the ship in order to provide a lead so that we could bring the boat safely alongside the ship."

Once crew secured the smaller boat to the starboard side of the cruise ship with rope and the migrants safely disembarked, staff members from various departments helped provide medical assistance, food and water, warm blankets, and a change of clothes, according to the video. They were also given the opportunity to call their families back at home, McCue added.

Maritime law requires all vessel — including cruise ships — to provide assistance to passengers in distress regardless of circumstance. On Monday, a Carnival cruise ship similarly rescued a boat of five migrants 25 nautical miles northwest of Cuba.

"After rescuing the five people adrift at sea, the ship's crew coordinated with United States Coast Guard officials and rendezvoused with them near Key West," a Carnival spokesperson told Insider in an emailed statement. "The ship resumed on its voyage with its scheduled itinerary unaffected and Carnival Celebration returned to Miami on Tuesday morning after a week-long Caribbean cruise."

Celebrity Cruises did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Florida has recently faced an influx of Cuban migrants seeking asylum in the United States, with at least 500 migrants arriving to the state's coast by boat over the past week, the Associated Press reported. Rick Ramsay, the local county's sheriff, described the recent surge as "a mass migration crisis" that's overwhelming the rural area's available resources.

Steve Glassman, a Fort Lauderdale city commissioner, was one of the thousands of passengers onboard the Celebrity Cruise ship during Tuesday's rescue mission, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

"It makes you realize every day how blessed we really are," he told the local outlet. "You have to be very desperate to put yourself in harm's way with just a hope of a better life."

Are you a cruise worker? Have a story or tip to share? Email this reporter from a non-work address at htowey@insider.com.