In a remarkable display of endurance and survival, a Chinese woman was rescued by a Japanese tanker after being swept out to sea.
The woman had been enjoying a swim at a beach in Japan when she found herself caught in a strong current that carried her an astonishing 50 miles away from shore. For 37 hours, she clung to her swimming ring amidst the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, until her plight was noticed by the crew of a passing Japanese cargo ship early Wednesday, about 36 hours after she disappeared off the southern tip of Boso Peninsula. The cargo ship then asked a passing LPG tanker, the Kakuwa Maru No. 8, to help. Two of its crew members jumped into the sea and rescued the woman, officials said. She was airlifted by a coast guard helicopter to land, they said.
They told TV Asahi that they shouted encouragement to the woman not to give up as she bobbed up and down in waves that were about 2 meters (6.5 feet) high. Two of them jumped into the water and tied a rope around the woman, while other crew members pulled her up to the tanker, they said.
One crew member said everyone was relieved the woman survived, even though she seemed to be exhausted—and with good reason–after her ordeal.
Social media was abuzz with messages praising the crew members who helped in the rescue as “heroes,” saying they did a “good job,” while others celebrated the woman’s perseverance and survival. She had faced the dangers of heat stroke, hypothermia at night, being hit by a ship in the dark, and possible shark attacks. Despite this, she walked away after being examined at a nearby hospital, the officials said.
Hidetoshi Saito, a senior member of the Society of Water Rescue and Survival Research, said in a televised interview that the woman’s survival was like “a miracle.”
The Chinese Embassy in Tokyo on Thursday remarked on the rescue of the woman to all involved: the Chinese Consulate and the Japanese authorities as well as the cargo and the tanker crew. In the message, the embassy urged Chinese residents in Japan to check weather and maritime conditions, use caution when going to the beach or engaging in marine activity and to choose locations staffed by lifeguards.
