Epson P4000 (by 2 users)

Recently used my brand-new P4000 to temporarily store over 5000 photographs
during a trip to the Galapagos. After downloading some of them to my
laptop, I disconnected the P4000 from my computer (dragged Epson icon from
Mac desktop to the Trash and disconnected the USB cord). However, the
P4000 screen remains black, the buttons are not responding (cannot power
off) and the blue light is still flashing - the unit is stuck in an endless
loop. Epson Tech Service office advised that using the Reset button would
likely erase the memory (not an option), the local Epson repair shops can only
ship the P4000 back to Epson to exchange for a new unit also losing the
memory (not an option) and, as a last resort, I have now unplugged the AC
adapter waiting for the battery to drain - hoping that when I plug it back
in the unit will start up with data undamaged. Does anyone have any other
recommendations for how can I salvage the invaluable data that is on this
unit ??? - Gian