A fisherman who went missing in the Pacific Ocean for 95 days was found alive (4 photos + 1 video)

Máximo Napa Castro set out on a fishing trip from his coastal town of Marcona in southern Peru on December 7. He took enough food to last two weeks. But 10 days later, the 61-year-old fisherman was caught in a storm and lost his course. For 95 days, he drifted in the open ocean, drinking rainwater and eating insects, birds and turtles.





When Napa Castro failed to return home, his family reported him missing. For weeks, Peruvian naval patrols searched the waters in the hope of finding the fisherman, but to no avail.

He was only discovered months later, when sailors from an Ecuadorian fishing vessel spotted the boat drifting 1,000 kilometers from the coastline. The crew found Napa Castro in critical condition on March 11. He was severely dehydrated.



The fisherman survived by collecting rainwater and eating scraps from his supplies. After 15 days without food, he was forced to take extreme measures to stay alive: "I ate cockroaches, birds, the last thing I ate was turtles. I didn't want to die."

Thinking about his family helped him survive. According to the man, he constantly thought about his mother and granddaughter, who joined his family a few months before he disappeared at sea.

"I have a granddaughter who is a few months old, and thinking about her gave me strength," he said. "I thank God for giving me a second chance."





The fisherman was taken to the Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes Hospital in Paita for examination. He was discharged on March 15.

His mother, Elena Castro, told local media that she had begun to lose hope of ever seeing her son again.

"I asked God to bring him back to me, whether he was alive or not, even if it was just to see him again," Elena told TV Peru.

The woman says her daughters helped her stay optimistic: "My daughters never lost faith. They kept telling me, 'Mom, he's coming back, he's coming back.'"



Napa's daughter wrote on social media: "Thank you, Ecuadorian brothers, for saving my father! God bless you! Special thanks to Captain Wilson."