In addition to surviving on ketchup and seasoning, the 47-year-old man collected rainwater with a cloth, Cmdr. Carlos Urbano Montes said.
He tried to light a fire and send a distress signal but had no luck. At one point, he wrote the word"HELP" on the hull of the boat, and when a plane passed overhead, he used a mirror to send a signal.news releaseA nearby container ship took him to the port city of Cartagena, where members of the Colombian navy treated him and made sure he returned home, the navy said.While lost at sea, Francois had to bail out the boat so it wouldn't sink, The Associated Press reported.
And in addition to surviving on ketchup and seasoning, he collected rainwater with a cloth, Cmdr. Carlos Urbano Montes said."At some point I lost hope and thought about my family, but I thank the coast guard," he said."If it weren't for them I wouldn't be telling the story."Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia
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