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An Australian sailor survived a 17-kilometer swim in shark-infested waters after falling from his boat while fishing.
Last week, John Deer was stranded alone and without a life jacket off the coast of Panama, in an area known to locals as “point shark”.
Deer, of Victoria, sold everything he owned in 2019 to go around the world on the adventure of a lifetime.
Towards the end of what was a 30-hour trip from Colombia to Panama, he fell off the back of his boat while on autopilot with both sails up and the engine running.
Australian John Deer was miraculously saved.
The deer had just caught a small tuna and, releasing the line and repositioning the bait, he lost his balance and fell from the back of the boat.
I remember falling into the water and when I saw my boat go away I thought: “That’s it, I’m done, I’ll die”he told the Daily Mail Australia.
“It happened so fast. I put my foot in the wrong place and suddenly I was in the water watching my boat go away and completely helpless.”
A mistake by Deer nearly cost him his life.
“I don’t know if it was both panic and denial at first. I started yelling ‘no, no, no!’ just for an hour of sunshine.
He said his survival instincts took hold and he remembered a trick to tell which part of the earth was closest.
“You can tell which part of the earth is closest to what appears to be the darkest,” he said. “So even though I could see my ship going in one direction, I knew the land on my side was closer.”
The heartbreaking post of Deer.
“I knew I went out to sea around 5pm, so daylight was limited. I memorized the shape of the mountains and after sunset I only followed the darkest part “.
The deer began alternating the survival shot as it made its way to the mainland. Since he was moving so slowly, he began to wonder if he was making any progress.
“I didn’t know if I was going to get there or how I was going to get there and I was trying not to be distracted by the task at hand and reminding myself that I could do it,” he said.
This is how the ship remained after the sinking.
“I was saying aloud, ‘I’m getting closer, I have it, I can do it. I just had to be positive to keep my mind strong.'”
However, when night falls, Deer felt something bite his foot, causing him to panic.
Fearing it was a shark, I went delirious. I started screaming, kicking and punching in all directions to chase it away, “he said.” I knew I was low on energy, I was getting really tired, so I decided to keep swimming. “
The deer must have swam 17 kilometers.
“I soon realized it was the fish that was nibbling me. They didn’t leave me alone, they were the size of my forearm and kept biting my body and legs. I have bite marks and scratches all over my legs.”
Police later told him that the place where he fell off the boat was known locally as “shark spot”. due to the predators that are often seen there.
In the morning, after swimming to the next spot at the crack of dawn, the sailor felt adrift. “I found a decent sized stick and put my shirt on the end to use a signal to signal passing boats. The first one didn’t see me, so I went up to a more visible point higher. The second boat saw me and responded with his hand, but kept going. “ counted.
Deer’s journey was interrupted, but he was miraculously able to save his life.
“And finally a third party came to my rescue and agreed to take me to the border town where I was originally headed after seeing the despair and tears in my eyes,” Deer said.
When he reached the coast, he learned that his boat hit some rocks and was destroyed. As a result, his journey around the world was interrupted. However, even with the pain of seeing her dream come to an abrupt end, the sailor thanked him for the miracle of being saved.
Source: Clarin
