Russian fishermans Miracle

Imagine you have been out fishing in your boat when terrible weather comes and you are shipwrecked somewhere remote without communication and proper food sources and you are found after three months, it sounds like something out of a Hollywood film doesn't it.

On 10th October 2007 eleven Russian fisherman set out in two boats to catch a haul of fish in the remote region of the Kamchatka Peninsula (6,700 kilometres east of Moscow). After a huge storm erupted while they were fishing both boats were wrecked and washed up in a bay.

Since October 10th 2007 all eleven fishermen had been living in the wrecks of their boats to provice shelter and burning furniture from the boats to provide warmth. The food supplies they had were the fish they caught prior to becoming shipwrecked and also flour they found in an abandoned military base they found in the bay.

At the beginning of the new year with food supplies becoming dangerously low the fishermen decided to split in to two teams, one stayed at their make shift base in the wreckage of their boats while the other set out on foot to find help.

The team that set out on foot came across Russian soldiers after an ardeous trek, these soldiers raised the alarm and sent helicopters in to rescue the other half of the team still with the wreckage. This was on Friday January 4th 2008, 87 days after they first started out on Wednesday October 10th 2007.

After three months living in a remote region of Russia with no communication and very basic supplies all eleven fishermen not only survived, they also required no medical treatment

To me this is a wonderful story that shows just how people can work together during times of distress to beat the odds and survive.

Read the inital story on BBC news