Salvador Alvarenga left El Salvador to fish for tuna and shark in Mexico when he was swept out to sea in a storm in November 2012. 14 months later he was found, almost 6,000 miles away from his home port. His story was unbelievable. Now we know more of the harrowing details.
On January 30, 2014, he came ashore on the remote island of Ebon Atoll where he was discovered by fishermen. His story created headlines – and questions, with many amazed that he had not lost more weight after eating only uncooked fish and birds they caught with their hands.
According to Alvarenga, his fishing mate, Ezequiel Cordoba, 24, died of hunger and thirst within several weeks. He was so lonely he talked to friend’s corpse.
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The reviews are in, and ‘438 Days‘ : An Extraordinary True Story of Survival at Sea, by Jonathan Franklin, provides a detailed, brutal look into Salvador’s experiences. With it’s release comes more answers, and more questions.
In an article on The Guardian, Franklin writes, “After two months at sea, Alvarenga had become accustomed to capturing and eating birds and turtles, while Córdoba had begun a physical and mental decline. They were on the same boat but headed on different paths. Córdoba had been sick after eating raw seabirds and made a drastic decision: he began to refuse all food. He gripped a plastic water bottle in both hands but was losing the energy, and motivation, to put it up to his mouth. Alvarenga offered tiny chunks of bird meat, occasionally a bite of turtle. Córdoba clenched his mouth. Depression was shutting his body down.”
438 days can be purchased at bookshop.theguardian.com, and an in-depth edited extract can be read at the guardian.com.
