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A man rescued in the Sea of Okhotsk told how he survived for 2 months
The crew of a trawler with the symbolic name "Angel" accidentally discovered a small inflatable boat 23 km from the village of Kamchatka. The man on board the catamaran clearly needed help, but the crew was shocked when it turned out that he had been waiting for help for 67 days.
His brother and nephew Mikhail, both from Buryatia, set off on a trip on a catamaran on August 4. They dreamed of visiting Shantar Island in Khabarovsk Krai. We began our usual route from the northern coast of Sakhalin near the town of Okha to Cape Perovsky on the mainland. This transit distance is approximately 150 km. The Pichugins arrived safely in Shantar, and their friends joined them along the way. They were the first to raise the alarm on August 9, when the Pichugins set off back by boat, but there was no news from them.
On August 10, the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported their disappearance. Rescuers from Khabarovsk, Sakhalin and Kamchatka took part in the search operation. By the end of August, almost 200 thousand square kilometers of water had been surveyed, but no traces of the boat with three people were found in the open ocean, bays or coasts.
Mikhail told the sailors who rescued him that his extensive experience as a hunter and fisherman helped him survive the fatal journey. At first, all three of them ate freeze-dried noodles and peas and drank 20 liters of drinking water together. They tried to stretch their common rations over the maximum number of days in the hope of being saved. But no help came, and when the supplies ran out, they had to quench their thirst with rainwater.
Igor Kazurin, a friend of the Pichugin family: "I think something similar happened to the engine. And then there was the current and the elements, and it was impossible to swim or get across. 67 days at sea without water or food... Perhaps the body could not withstand such a severe test."
Sergey Pichugin's mother-in-law Lyubov Khabaganova: "These are strong people, strong in spirit, hunters, fishermen, capable of surviving in any circumstances. But, of course, many people would not survive without water. It's a pity."
Late in the evening, the ship "Angel" arrived at the port of Magadan. Mikhail Pichugin was taken to the hospital. According to doctors, despite the most difficult trials and fatigue, the man lost 50 kg, but his life is not in danger. Why his brother Sergei and nephew Ilya, who turned 16 during the trip, did not survive, Mikhail will have to tell not only his relatives, but also law enforcement agencies.