North Carolina woman onboard Sydney cruise ship lashed by huge waves

SYDNEY (WTVD) -- There's finally some relief arriving for 2,500 passengers onboard the Carnival Spirit.

The cruise ship was forced to weather a severe storm outside Sydney Harbour.

Thirty-foot waves and 60-mile per hour winds lashed the ship.

A UNC-Wilmington student from Raleigh was on the ship experiencing it all.

"It was really terrifying," said JoAnna Culpepper, who graduated from Enloe High School in 2012. "The crew did a really good job of pulling everything together last minute and coming up with activities."

Culpepper is studying at the University of Western Sydney this semester.

The ship was returning from a 12-night cruise to several South Pacific Islands.

Carnival is offering 25-percent off of Culpepper's next cruise.

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