Six castaways, lost as a result of a storm, were rescued in Brazil thanks to a note sent in a bottle. This is a story that seems to come out of a fairy tale, but it happened in a river in the state of Pará, in the heart of the Brazilian Amazon. This was reported on Thursday by official sources.
After several days surviving on an island, the castaways wrote a note, put it in a plastic water bottle, tied it to a buoy, and threw it into the water. Hours later, a fisherman found her and notified the Brazilian Navy, who managed to rescue them.
“Help! Help! We need help. Our boat caught fire. We have been on the island of Flecxas (sic) for 13 days, without food. Notify our family, “said the note written by the castaways, which also included the contact telephone numbers of their relatives, according to the photo released by the Navy.
It all started on March 24, when the six crew members left in a medium-sized boat for a journey that would last regarding 10 days, from the city of Santarem to the municipality of Chaves. The latter near the mouth of the Amazon River.
During the journey they were surprised by a storm and the bad weather, in addition to making their mobilization difficult, caused a fire in the boat, which forced them to seek shelter.
“I’m unemployed. I left Santarém to make this trip. On the way we were caught by a storm and the ship caught fire in the kitchen area,” said Jeferson Marcos, one of the crew members rescued by the Navy, quoted in a statement.
Castaways are rescued in Brazil thanks to a note in a bottle
According to Marcos, between the six of them they managed to take the “Bom Jesus” to the beach of an island known as La Flecha, regarding 150 kilometers from Bethlehem, the capital of Pará. In that place they survived for 17 days with the food they brought and rainwater.
Around the ninth day on the island, it occurred to them to write the note, an idea that did not come from what they remembered from childhood stories or from the stories they watched on television as children.
Sending notes inside bottles tied to a float is a tactic recommended by the Navy for this type of situation. And that some of the crew members knew from courses taken with Navy officers.
The castaways were rescued by the Navy by helicopter and, although they were apparently in good health, they were transferred to a medical center.
