Man survives almost 24 hours in waters full of sharks and crocodiles by clinging to piece of wood

A person whose boat capsized in stormy seas off Australia’s north coast was rescued on Wednesday after he survived for nearly 24 hours in shark- and crocodile-infested waters by clinging to a bit of wooden.

The Queensland man was discovered floating within the Torres Strait 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from his upturned dinghy by an air rescue crew.

He was “clinging to some flotsam” and was winched to security, based on the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, which posted pictures of the capsized boat and the person’s rescue on social media.

The man, who was not named, was “very lucky” to have survived, the authority mentioned in an announcement.

He had “departed Getullai Island (on Tuesday) and failed to arrive at their destination by the expected time,” the assertion mentioned.

A search by rescue plane late Tuesday was unsuccessful. The hunt resumed within the morning with the plane, a helicopter and a police vessel concerned.

By late morning “the upturned dinghy was located in the water and following a short aerial search the missing person was found about two kilometers from the dinghy,” the authority mentioned.

There are practically 300 islands off the northern tip of Australia. 

Most of the islands’ residents are Indigenous Torres Strait Islanders, with shut ties to territories in each Australia and Papua New Guinea.

The Torres Strait consists of 18 islands, that are scattered over a geographic space of 48,000 sq. kilometers, based on the authorities.  Sharks symbolize an necessary image within the area, the authorities notes, as they’re “known as the protector of the reef.”

The incident comes about two months after three males whose fishing boat sank within the Gulf of Mexico have been rescued after surviving for greater than a day regardless of being attacked by sharks that inflicted deep cuts on their arms and shredded one in every of their life jackets.