Five people, including two children, have been found alive on a remote island in Kiribati after drifting an estimated 5,400 kilometres across the Pacific Ocean for close to three months. The group was rescued on Sunday by villagers on Fanning Island, nearly three months after their boat vanished following a storm in the Federated States of Micronesia.
A routine crossing turned catastrophic
The five survivors were among a group of nine who set out on 30 July on what was supposed to be a straightforward, one-hour crossing between the islands of Murilo and Ruo in the Federated States of Micronesia. The journey went badly wrong when the boat was caught in a storm, sending the group adrift across open ocean.
The US Coast Guard launched a search operation that ran for 10 days before being suspended on 9 August. During that search, crews covered more than 25,000 nautical miles with the assistance of US Navy and Air Force aircraft, but found no trace of the vessel or those on board.
The fate of the other four people who set out on the voyage has not been disclosed. Chuuk State Governor Alexander Narruhn issued a statement on Sunday evening acknowledging their absence and calling for continued prayers for the missing companions.
"There were nine people aboard the boat that went missing," the governor said. "Thanks be to God for his love and mercy that five of the nine people have been found. We continue to pray for their four companions."
Rescue and recovery on Fanning Island
Villagers on Fanning Island spotted the drifting boat on Sunday and brought the five survivors ashore. The local member of parliament, Kaotitaake Rakoroa, said the group was taken in and cared for by the pastor of the local Uniting Church. Medical officials on the island provided initial treatment, and the MP recommended the survivors travel to Kiritimati Island, the nearest urban centre, for further medical care.
News of the rescue was relayed to the MP through police on Kiritimati Island, with the information ultimately reaching the capital, Tarawa. Photos and videos of the five survivors were posted online shortly after they came ashore on Sunday.
The survivors have not yet spoken publicly about their experience and have asked that their privacy be respected. Family members based in the Federated States of Micronesia have confirmed they have been able to make contact with some of those rescued.
Governor Narruhn said he had asked the Federated States of Micronesia's president to open diplomatic discussions with the Kiribati government to arrange the survivors' return home.
Kiribati waters the scene of multiple recent rescues
The discovery of the five survivors is the latest in a series of remarkable open-ocean rescues in and around Kiribati in recent weeks.
Last week, an 18-year-old from Bougainville in Papua New Guinea was pulled from the water between the islands of Tarawa and Maiana after 41 days adrift. He and his cousin had set out on a fishing trip from northern Bougainville in September but suffered engine trouble and drifted more than 2,000 kilometres to Kiribati. His cousin did not survive the ordeal.
The month prior, three other people from Bougainville arrived home safely after spending around 70 days at sea. They were located near Kiritimati Island, the same area now at the centre of the latest rescue effort.
The string of survival stories highlights the treacherous and isolated nature of the vast stretches of the central Pacific, where disabled or storm-stricken vessels can drift for months with little chance of being spotted. The survivors' journey of nearly 5,400 kilometres ranks among the most extraordinary open-ocean drifts in the region in recent memory.
