A Dominica man lost at sea for nearly a month survived, in part, eating ketchup, garlic powder and Maggi seasoning cubesauthorities said.
Elvis Francois, who was rescued from his sailboat this week, it also consumed rainwater that it collected with a rag during its 24 days in the Caribbean.
missing man
The 47 year old man was lost in December when currents pushed his sailboat out to sea while carrying out repairs off the island of Saint Martin in the Netherlands Antilleswhich is where he calls home, he told Colombian officials.
I called my friends They tried to contact me but i lost the signal. There was nothing else to do but sit and wait,” Francois explained in a video released by the Colombian Navy.
Finally, was seen by a passing plane while using a mirror as a signal and writing the word “help” on the hull of the shipaccording to the authorities.
Rescue
A passing container ship picked it up about 120 nautical miles northwest of the port city of Cartagena.said navy officials.
Before his miraculous survival, Francois said that I constantly had to get water out of the boat so it wouldn’t sink. She tried to set a fire as a distress signal, she said, but failed.
“At some point I lost hope and thought about my family, but I thank the coast guard. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be telling the story,” Francois said.
Commander Carlos Urbano Montes said on Thursday that Francois was in good health after a medical check-up, but apparently he lost some weight.
The Navy said that after medical control, they handed him over to immigration officials so he could return home to Dominica.