Image Credit: Associated Press (AP) - This recounts the extraordinary tale of Mikhail Pichugin, a 45-year-old man who was discovered alive after being stranded for 67 days following an engine failure during a doomed whale-watching trip on a Russian trawler. Reports from local media reveal that Mikhail was found in a rubber dinghy, clinging to the bodies of his deceased brother and nephew from the ill-fated expedition. In a video shared by East2West Media Group, he is shown wearing an orange life jacket, signaling the fishermen in the darkness and expressing his frailty to the rescuers. Mikhail was rescued at night and brought aboard the fishing vessel Angel by the crew. Despite losing a significant amount of weight, he is said to be in a stable condition.

Initially mistaking the small inflatable boat for debris, the crew decided to investigate further and were astonished to find Pichugin. He was promptly taken to an emergency care unit at Magadan hospital. Although he is suffering from dehydration and hypothermia, his condition is stable. Mikhail, his 49-year-old brother, and his 15-year-old nephew set out to the remote Shantar Islands in early August, a known whale feeding area off the Sea of Okhotsk's northwest coast. They went missing on their return journey to Okha city on Sakhalin Island on August 9. Upon their family reporting them missing, local authorities initiated a search and rescue mission. Despite searching for a month without success, the operation was eventually called off due to the assumption that survival in the harsh conditions was implausible.

According to reports, the men had packed supplies for two weeks, warm clothing, life jackets, flares, and approximately five gallons of water. It is believed that their predicament was caused by engine failure. The details of how Mikhail managed to survive in the frigid waters of East Asia and the reasoning behind the bo...Fortunately, At escaped being caught in the storms that claimed the lives of his brother and nephew. Local media reports indicate that a preliminary criminal investigation has been initiated by the local prosecutor's office into the deaths. Furthermore, Mikhail could potentially be sentenced to jail time as Russian law prohibits his boat from traveling beyond two nautical miles from the shore.