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Man who drifted at sea for 67 days violated navigation rules. The boat was not designed for such a journey
A man who drifted at sea for 67 days violated navigation rules. The boat was not designed for such travel.
TASS: Tourist Pichugin had no right to swim in Baikat further than 5 km from the shore.
The inflatable boat "Bykat 470", on which Mikhail Pichugin, who survived two months of drifting, tried to swim 150 km from the Shantar Islands to the coast of Sakhalin, was not designed for such a route, a source in the emergency services reported.
"The range of small vessels from the shore is limited to 2.7 nautical miles, or 5 kilometers," he said, adding: "Baikat 470 is a small vessel." Pichugin, the owner of the vessel, said he was not allowed to go that far from the shore even after passing inspection.
Pichugin set off on a trip to the Shantar Islands with his brother and 15-year-old nephew in early August. They got lost on the way to Sakhalin.
Fishermen found Pichugin 67 days later in a boat with the bodies of his relatives. According to preliminary data, the man survived due to excess weight. My weight dropped from 100 kg to 50 kg in two months.
The first thing the man said after being found at sea was that he had very little strength left. A video of the boat being found was also published online. After recovering, Pichugin plans to return to his family in Buryatia.
The man also said that his brother had gone crazy in the last days of his life. According to him, the reason for his relative's confusion was the death of his son, which occurred in early September. According to other versions, the minor died of dehydration and hypothermia or hunger.
The man faces up to seven years in prison. Information has emerged that a criminal case has been opened for violating traffic safety rules and operating watercraft, which resulted in the deaths of two people. If it is proven that Pichugin did not properly prepare the ship before sailing, he could face imprisonment.
The prosecutor's office and the investigative committee are currently checking whether the vessel on which the defendant was located was equipped with the necessary items for going out to sea, such as radios, emergency communication equipment and life jackets.
A man who was stranded in the Sea of Okhotsk for 67 days said he had been preparing a funeral before rescuers arrived. He admitted that he had already tied his body to a boat so that it would not float away and his family could say goodbye properly. Pichugin had previously done something similar with his dead brother and nephew.
Doctors and fishermen say the 46-year-old would have lived less than a week on his drifting boat if he had not been found. Pichugin's ex-wife said the search for him was either stopped or resumed.
The woman also said that although she fired more than 10 flares, she was unable to find the missing person with them.