Fisherman discovered alive after drifting over 90 days at sea says he survived consuming birds, turtles and cockroaches
A Peruvian fisherman was discovered alive after drifting at sea for 94 days, a navy official stated Saturday, as he was discharged from hospital following his ordeal.
Maximo Napa, 61, was rescued in his small fishing boat on Tuesday after being noticed by an Ecuadoran vessel off the coast of Chimbote in northern Peru.
He advised native media in a tearful interview that he survived at sea by consuming cockroaches, birds and turtles.
“I did not wish to die, for my mom. I’ve a two-month-old granddaughter — I clung to that. Daily I considered my mom,” Napa stated.
The Peruvian navy posted photos of the rescue, together with one displaying Napa reuniting together with his brother after being rescued and one other displaying the fisherman receiving medical consideration.
La Republica/Handout by way of REUTERS
On Saturday, he was discharged from hospital within the coastal metropolis of Paita.
“Mr. Napa arrived in good bodily situation. He may stroll, wash himself. Shocked, however in good bodily situation,” stated Peruvian Navy port captain Jorge Gonzalez.
The fisherman had set sail on Dec. 7 from the port of San Juan de Marcona however dangerous climate situations and the present induced him to lose course.
His small boat, which had no radio beacon, ended up on the excessive seas.
“It’s a miracle that my father has been discovered,” his daughter Ines Napa advised the RPP radio station. “We, as a household, by no means gave up hope of discovering him.”
His niece, Leyla Torres Napa, advised the RPP radio station the household deliberate to have fun his birthday, which handed whereas he was misplaced at sea, based on the BBC.
“The day of his beginning was distinctive as a result of all that he may eat [while at sea] was a small cookie, so it is rather necessary for us that we have fun as a result of, for us, he has been reborn,” she stated.
La Republica/Handout by way of REUTERS
Napa’s ordeal comes simply months after the dramatic rescue of one other man misplaced at sea for an prolonged time period. In October, Russian Mikhail Pichugin was rescued after spending greater than two months adrift in a small inflatable boat within the Sea of Okhotsk, off the coast of Russia. He stated he survived by battling shivering chilly and consuming rainwater. Pichugin, 46, had set off to observe whales together with his 49-year-old brother and 15-year-old nephew. However the boat’s engine shut down on their approach again on Aug. 9. Pichugin’s brother and nephew later died, and he tied their our bodies to the boat to stop them from being washed away.
In 2023, an Australian sailor stated he survived greater than two months misplaced at sea together with his canine. Tim Shaddock, 51, and his canine Bella have been crusing from Mexico to French Polynesia when tough seas broken their boat and its electronics system, leaving them adrift and reduce off from the world.
