news story

A man who got lost in the Caribbean survived 24 days with nothing but ketchup.

The survivor wrote the word “help” on his sailboat from which he was found.

From the source

A man who got lost in the Caribbean survived 24 days, after consuming only "ketchup", during this period, before relief personnel rescued him in Colombian waters, according to what the Colombian maritime authorities announced.

Elvis François, who is from the Dominican Republic, 47, said in a video clip published by the Colombian Navy, “I did not have any food except a package of ketchup, garlic powder, and cubes of broth.

So I mixed all these ingredients with water, and ate them for 24 days, so that I could survive.”

The survivor wrote the word “help” on his sailboat, which was found 120 nautical miles (220 km) northwest of Puerto Bolivar, in the northern province of La Guajira.

François said, "I spotted a plane in the sky on January 15, and began to send signals to it through the reflection of sunlight on a mirror I had, and when I saw it pass twice, I realized that those inside saw me."

The Colombian Navy immediately came to rescue him with the help of a merchant ship.

A statement from the Colombian Navy indicated that the man, who is based in the Dominican Republic, was lost at sea while repairing a sailboat in front of a port on the island of Saint-Martin, in the northeastern Antilles, due to bad weather that day.

He added, "The man, who knows nothing about maritime navigation, was lost and lost at sea, and his efforts to deal with the vehicle and its equipment were in vain."

François tried several times to contact the emergency department, but he did not succeed in that, due to the weakness in the communications network.

“I couldn't do anything but sit and wait, 24 days off land, by myself,” the man said.

I didn't even know what to do, or what point I was in.

It was hard, and I lost hope sometimes while thinking about my family.”

The man was referred to the Colombian Immigration Service to organize his return to the Dominican Republic.

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