Brutuskend
Lifer
Three men and a boat-lost nine months at sea
Three Mexican fishermen who say they set out in October from Mexico's Pacific coast and spent nine months adrift eating raw fish and reading the Bible, were yesterday heading towards the Marshall Islands, having been rescued by a fishing boat.
Contacted by telephone in the Marshall Islands' capital of Majuro, Eugene Muller, manager of Koo's Fishing Co, said a company boat had picked up the three men on August 9 near the South Pacific island chain about 8,850 kilometres from the rustic tourist town of San Blas.
Muller said the men were recovering, and would arrive in Majuro within two weeks, the boat's scheduled docking time.
Survivor Jesus Vidana, 27, told the Televisa news network in a telephone hookup to the boat's communications system that they drank rain water because "it rained everyday."
"We fished, and we ate the fish raw ... because there was no fire to cook with," he said.
"Two times, we almost sank," he said. "The waves washed into the boat, and we thought we were going to die."
But "we never lost hope," he said. "Because there is a God up there."
Vidana said he and the other two men set off on October 28 from San Blas, about 660 kilometres northwest of Mexico City, to fish for sharks.
But mechanical problems and adverse winds quickly pushed their 8-metre boat farther out to sea. "It was nine months and nine days," Vidana recalled. "One of the guys on the boat has a watch that shows the months and the days."
"One time we went 15 days without eating anything," he said, sounding hoarse and sleepy. "Our feet are swollen, our arms are swollen ... but we're not in that bad shape."
The exact date the men left San Blas could not be independently confirmed. Phone calls to port officials there went unanswered.
However, the government news agency Notimex interviewed relatives of the men in San Blas, who said they had only been missing for three months.
Muller said the men's boat appeared to have had engine problems.
"Their two motors had been dismantled, and it seemed they were trying to swap parts to get one working," Muller said.
He said the boat's captain had told him "they were very skinny and they were very hungry. The first thing we did, we gave them something to eat and they chowed down."
Survivor Lucio Rendon, 27, recalled that "we didn't see any ships for months."
"We're recovering," Rendon said, "sleeping a lot, and eating well."
Salvador Ordonez, the third survivor, said they carried only flashlights and a compass. But, he said, "I knew I was going to live."
Vidana said he now feels "a lot of desire to live, because God gave me an opportunity, something like being born again."
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Three Mexican fishermen who say they set out in October from Mexico's Pacific coast and spent nine months adrift eating raw fish and reading the Bible, were yesterday heading towards the Marshall Islands, having been rescued by a fishing boat.
Contacted by telephone in the Marshall Islands' capital of Majuro, Eugene Muller, manager of Koo's Fishing Co, said a company boat had picked up the three men on August 9 near the South Pacific island chain about 8,850 kilometres from the rustic tourist town of San Blas.
Muller said the men were recovering, and would arrive in Majuro within two weeks, the boat's scheduled docking time.
Survivor Jesus Vidana, 27, told the Televisa news network in a telephone hookup to the boat's communications system that they drank rain water because "it rained everyday."
"We fished, and we ate the fish raw ... because there was no fire to cook with," he said.
"Two times, we almost sank," he said. "The waves washed into the boat, and we thought we were going to die."
But "we never lost hope," he said. "Because there is a God up there."
Vidana said he and the other two men set off on October 28 from San Blas, about 660 kilometres northwest of Mexico City, to fish for sharks.
But mechanical problems and adverse winds quickly pushed their 8-metre boat farther out to sea. "It was nine months and nine days," Vidana recalled. "One of the guys on the boat has a watch that shows the months and the days."
"One time we went 15 days without eating anything," he said, sounding hoarse and sleepy. "Our feet are swollen, our arms are swollen ... but we're not in that bad shape."
The exact date the men left San Blas could not be independently confirmed. Phone calls to port officials there went unanswered.
However, the government news agency Notimex interviewed relatives of the men in San Blas, who said they had only been missing for three months.
Muller said the men's boat appeared to have had engine problems.
"Their two motors had been dismantled, and it seemed they were trying to swap parts to get one working," Muller said.
He said the boat's captain had told him "they were very skinny and they were very hungry. The first thing we did, we gave them something to eat and they chowed down."
Survivor Lucio Rendon, 27, recalled that "we didn't see any ships for months."
"We're recovering," Rendon said, "sleeping a lot, and eating well."
Salvador Ordonez, the third survivor, said they carried only flashlights and a compass. But, he said, "I knew I was going to live."
Vidana said he now feels "a lot of desire to live, because God gave me an opportunity, something like being born again."
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