Survival Adrift

Sixteen Months after setting off from Mexico for El Salvador, Jose Ivan came ashore on Ebon Atoll - a remote atoll  that is part of the 22 small islands that make up the Marshall Islands.  

Spanish speaking Jose Ivan came ashore from a  24 foot (7.3 meter) fibreglass boat.  Clad only in underpants, he was weak and thin - a sole survivor of a short journey that began in September 2012. 
He told the Norwegian anthropolgy students who found him that he had survived by eating turtles, fish and birds. His companion had died some months earlier. NZ Herald report.

Survival at sea over long periods maybe a harrowing experience but it does highlight the fact that survival is possible and that raises the question.  When is a boat lost with no survivors?  And how long should an official search last?   

The NZ Herald lists several cases:

• 1992 - 2 fisherman from Kiribati after 177 days at sea came ashore in Samoa
• 2006 - 3 Mexicans were found drifting mid ocean, 9 months after setting off on a shark fishing expedition
• 20012 - Panamanian 18 year old, Adrian Vasquez survived 26 days at sea when the motor of the cayuco he was on failed.  he was found in Ecuador.

All this becomes important for the family and friends of those aboard classic yacht Nina that disappeared in a storm when it was crossing the Tasman.

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