French sailor rescued after 16 hours thanks to flare
18/08/2022
A French sailor, who survived for 16 hours in a small air pocket under his capsized boat, has been rescued after firing a flare.
Laurent Camprubi, aged 62, got into trouble one night in August after his boat, Jeanne Solo Sailor, overturned in rough seas off Galicia in Spain.
A rescue ship and three helicopters located the overturned boat in darkness. A diver banged on the ship’s hull and Mr Camprubi responded by knocking and crying out. He had just 30 centimetres (12 inches) of air.
The Salvamento Maritimo rescuers worked frantically to stop the boat from sinking before reaching and rescuing the French sailor. The coastguard says, “A face appeared with the eyes open. He rushed towards us… we pulled him to the surface.”
Mr Camprubi, who was wearing a neoprene suit, was airlifted to hospital by helicopter but was uninjured. He says, “I knew that they were there and that they would rescue me, that they would not abandon me. It was a question of time, I had to survive for me and my family.”
The image is courtesy of Salvamento Maritimo‘s Facebook page.
