Revealed: How hero 'whale watcher' survived 67 days adrift at sea

A whale-watcher who miraculously survived 67 days adrift in an inflatable boat stayed alive by collecting rainwater and eating soaked dried peas and freeze-fried noodles, it has been revealed.

Footage shows a conscious Mikhail Pichugin, 45, arriving at the Russian port Magadan after he was spotted by fishermen in the stormy Sea of Okhotsk. 

The haggard and gaunt-looking man, who authorities said had lost 50 kilograms in body weight, was seen wrapped in blankets and was carried away on a stretcher. 

He was found alongside two corpses in the inflatable vessel - that of his elder brother Sergey Pichugin, 49, and his 15-year-old nephew Ilya. 

Distraught Mikhail brought their bodies back. One account said that Ilya had died first from hypothermia and dehydration, followed by Mikhail’s brother who was Ilya’s father.

He had tied the corpses to his 15ft catamaran-type inflatable boat to stop them rolling overboard in rough seas.

One version from SHOT Telegram channel was that the deaths were some three weeks ago.

Mikhail was described as 'severely dehydrated and exhausted' and was taken to the Magadan Regional Hospital.

He was too weak to climb on board the Angel and had to be winched onto the fishing vessel.

Read More

Miracle survival of 'whale watcher' found after 67 DAYS adrift at sea

A doctor treating him said: 'The patient is more or less stable, and we are examining him now.

'The necessary paperwork has been drawn up in the emergency room.

'We will place him in the intensive care unit and do further examinations.

'Examination of the chest organs, pressure measurement, monitoring, cardiogram, that is, a full range of analyses should be taken and looked at.

'The person, most likely, [has suffered] hypothermia for a long time. It is necessary to look, to examine fully.

'Then it will be possible to make some prognoses and to prescribe further treatment.'

'Dehydration itself is a dangerous story, of course, but in this case, again, we can't establish the degree of dehydration now until we conduct tests and analyses.'

Mikhail, his brother and his nephew had embarked on a whale-watching expedition in their 15ft boat on August 9 when their engine failed and they began to drift further out to sea.

Experts have hailed Mikhail's survival after more than two months on seas known for their storms and chilling temperatures as 'beyond comprehension'.

The relatives were on a return journey from the remote Shantar Islands, the waters of which are a feeding ground for whales, to Okha, on Russia's largest island Sakhalin, when disaster struck.

They had on board warm clothes, life jackets, flares, a small supply of food and 20 litres of drinking water, expecting their journey to take several days. 

But after the Baykat 470 M catamaran-type inflatable lost use of its Honda engine, the vessel drifted at least 625 miles over the course of more than two months.

Russian rescuers had looked for the trio to no avail and after a month evidently decided they were unlikely to survive in a sea known for its storms. 

But Mikhail was ultimately found some 14 miles off the village of Ust-Khairyuzovo, on the Kamchatka peninsula by the Angel fishing vessel. 

As the fishing boat approached, Mikhail was heard saying: 'Strength is low'.

The crew set about casting out a rope to pull the survivor's vessel close and eventually managed to haul him aboard. 

'When they said Misha [Mikhail] was alive, I thought we were waiting for a miracle, and it happened,' his 38-year-old ex-wife Ekaterina Pichugina, with whom he shares a daughter, told KP-Irkutsk.

'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.

'However, he lost 50kg, half his weight.'

Mikhail was described as a keen fisherman, but he has not yet told how he survived for so long.

Local experts are astonished at his survival for some 67 days after going missing.

Dmitry Lisitsyn, head of Sakhalin Environment Watch, said: 'There are two real miracles here.⠀

'The first is that such a small, uncontrolled boat was not capsized in the stormy autumn Sea of Okhotsk after more than two months of drifting.

'I can't wrap my head around how this is possible.

'The boat certainly went through several strong storms and remained afloat – this is something incredible.

'The second is that someone on this boat survived. The fact that two people died - a father and son - is very sad, but not surprising.

'But how the third person - their uncle and brother - could survive in the icy, stormy sea for more than two months is simply beyond comprehension. It truly is a miracle.'

He said: 'For over 20 years, I have been travelling the Sea of Okhotsk on an inflatable motorboat, and I fully understand what this man went through.

'But I cannot understand how he managed to survive.'

It is not known when Mikhail's brother and nephew died, as authorities have yet to interview Mikhail. 

But after he recovers, the fisherman may face the wrath of Russian prosecutors and a potential jail sentence of up to seven years despite his miraculous tale of survival.

His boat is deemed unsuitable in Russian law for venturing more than two nautical miles from the shore, and a criminal case has been opened into a potential violation of maritime safety laws.

The Russian Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor's Office said: 'The vessel was found in the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk off the village of Ust-Khayruzovo in the Kamchatka region.

'Two people died, one survived, he is receiving medical assistance.'

The office confirmed a criminal case had been initiated, reported TASS.