From BBC News · · 1m 30s
Two days on a capsized boat in the Bering Sea
A 15-year-old from a Yupik village clung to an overturned skiff for two days after losing his brother and cousin.
In brief
A 15-year-old from a Yupik village clung to an overturned skiff for two days after losing his brother and cousin. Derek Parker Aghnaanga survived two days on an overturned skiff in 50F water, the only one of three fishers to come home. Originally reported by BBC News.
Found sitting on the hull
A Coast Guard aircrew spotted a 15-year-old boy perched on top of a capsized boat in the Bering Sea on Monday morning. He was the only one left.
A trip that never came back
Derek Parker Aghnaanga set out from St Lawrence Island on Friday 4 September with his older brother and cousin. When the 18-foot skiff missed its Sunday return, the search began.
Pulled up by a passing crew
A nearby good Samaritan fishing vessel hauled him off the hull and recovered the bodies of his two relatives. He showed signs of hypothermia.
“Our hearts go out to the families, friends, and communities affected by the tragic loss of these two mariners.”
Two nights in 50F water
The skiff flipped on Saturday, leaving him without food or water. Captain Adam White said the boy hung on through darkness in water around 50F, or 10C.
“That's one tough kid”
What he told the captain
Between chattering teeth, the boy said his brother was still under the skiff and that his cousin had slipped away the night before the rescue.
“In the previous night, before our rescue, that his cousin had slipped away.”
Fishing to feed the village
His mother, Vina Kulowiyi, said her sons were providing meat for Savoonga, a Siberian Yupik village of about 800 where the store doesn't always stock it.
“My boys were born and raised to be providers. A tradition that is passed on.”
The essence
Derek Parker Aghnaanga survived two days on an overturned skiff in 50F water, the only one of three fishers to come home.
