Video: Russian man survives two months lost at sea in inflatable boat
Screenshot courtesy of Russian Emergency Ministry. A Russian man named Mikhail Pichugin has miraculously survived after being adrift in an inflatable boat for 67 days in the icy waters of the Sea of Okhotsk.
His brother Sergey, 49, and nephew Ilya, 15, both lost their lives during the ordeal. The trio had set out on 9 August 2024, on a whale-watching expedition from the Shantar Islands to Okha, on Russia’s largest island, Sakhalin. Their journey took a disastrous turn when the engine of their 5-metre Baykat 470 M inflatable catamaran failed, leaving them stranded.
Despite treacherous conditions in the Sea of Okhotsk, which is notorious for its harsh conditions, including storms and freezing temperatures, Pichugin, 46, was found alive by the Russian fishing vessel Angel on Monday (14 October), approximately 14 miles off the Kamchatka Peninsula near the village of Ust-Khayryuzovo. The bodies of his brother and nephew were found beside him.
Video footage of the rescue shows Pichugin, gaunt and emaciated, wrapped in blankets and wearing a life jacket. He had reportedly lost 50 kilograms, around half of his body weight, during the ordeal. Reports state that he shouted “I have no strength left,” as the fishing crew aboard Angel approached.
“There are two real miracles here,” says Dmitry Lisitsyn, head of the Sakhalin Environment Watch. “The first is that such a small, uncontrolled boat was not capsized in the stormy autumn Sea of Okhotsk…The second is that someone on this boat survived. How this man survived is beyond comprehension.”
Pichugin’s ex-wife, Ekaterina Aksenova, expressed her disbelief and relief at his rescue, telling news outlet KP-Irkutsk: “When they said Misha [Mikhail] was alive, I thought we were waiting for a miracle, and it happened.
“After 4am the captain of the ship on which Misha was being taken to Magadan called me. The captain says that Misha received medical assistance. His condition is satisfactory.”
🔴A man who had been adrift for a month in the #opensea without food or water was rescued off the coast of #Kamchatka.
— News.Az (@news_az) October 15, 2024
Mikhail Pichugin, along with his brother Sergey and his 15-year-old nephew Ilya, had set out to sail from Cape Perovsky in the Khabarovsk region to Sakhalin.… pic.twitter.com/1r2EF6gHUE
Pichugin has been described as a keen fisherman. The group had set off with a few supplies, including warm clothes, life jackets, flares, a limited food supply, and 20 litres of water. Russian media reports that they likely supplemented their water with rainwater and consumed dried noodles and peas to survive. Pichugin’s nephew, Ilya, is believed to have died in early September.
According to Baza, a Russian Telegram channel with close ties to law enforcement, after Ilya’s death, the brothers spent about three more weeks together before his brother Sergey fell into the icy water while attempting to wash himself. Although Pichugin managed to retrieve him, it’s understood he died shortly after the accident. Several reports claim Pichugin tied the bodies of his relatives to the boat to prevent them from drifting away.
An investigation has been launched into potential violations of maritime safety laws, as Russian law stipulates that such small vessels are not permitted to travel more than two nautical miles from shore. Pichugin could face a prison sentence of up to seven years if found guilty of negligence leading to the deaths of his brother and nephew. The Russian Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor’s Office confirmed the initiation of a criminal case, stating, “Two people died, one survived, he is receiving medical assistance.”
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