Fishermen rescued after 55 days adrift in Pacific — survived on rainwater, raw fish | World News
Five fishermen, who spent 55 days adrift in the Pacific Ocean were rescued and arrived safely at a port in the Galápagos Islands on Saturday, the Ecuadorian navy confirmed. The three Peruvian and two Colombian fishermen had departed from Pucusana Bay, south of Peru’s capital Lima, in mid-March.
Just two days into their journey, the boat’s alternator failed, disabling both communication and navigation systems, according to the Ecuadorian navy. “They had no starter, lights, and everything that a battery generates,” said Frigate Capt. Maria Fares of the Ecuadorian navy, in a statement to The Associated Press.
Drinking engine water, rainwater, sea water
Stranded without power and drifting aimlessly in open waters, the men resorted to extreme survival tactics. “They had to take rusted water out of the engine,” Fares said. “When a fish passed , they caught it and parboiled it to eat.” They also drank rainwater and small amounts of seawater when necessary, she added.
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The group was finally rescued on May 7 an Ecuadorian tuna boat named Aldo. Navy officials said all five are in stable condition and that authorities are coordinating with Peruvian and Colombian counterparts to arrange for their safe return.
A soldier checks the vitals of one of the five shipwrecked fishermen at the San Crobal Naval Base. (Photo: Ecuadorean Navy via AP)
Not the first Pacific survival tale
This incident is the latest in a string of dramatic rescues at sea.
Earlier this year, 61-year-old Peruvian fisherman Máximo Napa spent 95 days adrift before being rescued another Ecuadorian vessel. Napa later told local media he survived eating cockroaches, birds, and turtles, according to Agence France-Presse.
In another case, Russian sailor Mikhail Pichugin survived over two months in an inflatable boat in the Sea of Okhotsk, drinking rainwater while tying the bodies of his brother and nephew to the raft to prevent them from drifting away.Story continues below this ad
And in 2023, Australian sailor Tim Shaddock and his dog Bella were rescued after being stranded for over two months while sailing from Mexico to French Polynesia.
(With inputs from AP, CBS News)
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