Four Fishermen Lost at Sea, Found After Six Weeks
 BBC News
| | Rescued Costa Rican fisherman Roger Quintero, 15, embraces his sister Juana Mercados, 10, left, and his mother Mercedes Mercados. (AP) |
San Jose, Costa Rica - Costa Rican fishing boat captain Gregorio Collado Taylor always thought he would take his last breath at sea. But after spending more than six weeks adrift on the Pacific Ocean, Collado Taylor said he has found a new calling: God.
"I'm not giving up fishing out of fear but because a miracle has happened and I want to spread the word of God and say that miracles exist," the 41-year-old said.
Collado and his crew of four, one of whom is 15 years old, set off in a small fishing boat from the town of Playas del Coco,150 miles northwest of the capital San Jose, on November 16, and were blown into the ocean by fierce winds.
On Sunday, a Polish cargo ship spotted them burning plastic bags, about 115 miles off El Salvador's coast, and alerted Costa Rican coast guard officials who rescued them.
The crew survived on rainwater and sea turtles, whose blood they drank because it "has water in it and we needed it. It has a sweet taste," said the captain, who lost 55 pounds during the ordeal.
"They were days of horrible uncertainty," he said through tears Thursday. "We thought it would be impossible to return alive."
In August, three Mexican fishermen were who claimed they had spent nine months adrift on the Pacific were rescued. Mexican media speculated they might be drug smugglers who made up their account to avoid prosecution. |
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News from Around the Americas | January 2007 
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