Three men who were swept out to sea as Typhoon Kalmaegi tore across Vietnam’s central coast earlier this week have been rescued. In an incredible story of survival, all three managed to endure drifting on the rough sea for over 40 hours.
It all started on November 6 on Ly Son Island in the province of Quang Ngai. Two local men, Phan Duy Quang, 47, and Le Van Sanh, 37, spotted a third man, Duong Quang Cuong, 44, in the water. They grabbed a small basket boat and paddled out to help him. They never came back.
The pair had initially managed to pull Cuong out of the water, but the strong waves soon overpowered their little boat and swept it out to sea. On Thursday night, it capsized in the storm, dumping the three men into the South China Sea. The storm shredded their basket boat, and they had to rely on their life jackets to stay afloat.
The crew of Hai Nam 39 tend to Phan Duy Quang. Photo: Hai Nam 39
Drifted apart
According to Vietnamese media, the trio stayed together by holding hands through the night and all the next day. But by Saturday morning, exhaustion had taken hold, and they were unable to hold on to each other any longer and drifted apart.
Meanwhile, regional authorities received a distress report on Thursday and launched a search for the missing men. Several vessels and even helicopters were unsuccessful. As the storm continued through Friday, rescuers feared the worst.
Then, miraculously, on Saturday morning, the captain of a cargo ship called the Hai Nam 39 spotted Quang in the water. Barely conscious but still in his life jacket, he had floated 110km from Ly Son Island, where they had begun their ordeal.
“From the bridge, the captain saw someone adrift and immediately ordered the crew to slow down, turn back, and prepare rescue gear,” Le Van Luong, director of the Quang Ngai Maritime Port Authority, told local reporters.
Le Van Sanh aboard the An Vinh Express after over 40 hours at sea. Photo: An Vinh Express
All three survived
Speaking about the rescue, Captain Hoang Phu Xuyen said, “It wasn’t easy to get close because the ship still had engine momentum, and the waves were rough. He was conscious but very weak.” After several attempts in the choppy waters, they managed to throw a life preserver to Quang and drag him onto the ship.
Hours later, another vessel, the An Vinh Express, recovered Le Van Sanh, likewise over 10km from shore. And finally, just after 6 pm that same day, the fishing boat QB 92198 TS found and rescued Duong Quang Cuong.
Typhoon Kalmaegi struck Vietnam’s central coast earlier this week with torrential rain, gale-force winds, and widespread flooding. As of Saturday, authorities reported that five people have died, 11 boats sank, 57 houses in two villages collapsed, and 3,000 more lost their roofs.
