15-Year-Old Alaskan Boy
Dramatic Video Shows His Rescue At Sea …
His Brother and Cousin Drown
Published
A 15-year-old Alaskan boy miraculously survived days at sea clinging to a capsized boat — and his dramatic rescue was caught on video — but two of his relatives weren’t so lucky and wound up drowning, according to media reports.
Check out the video … the teen, identified as Derek Parker Aghnaanga, is holding onto the overturned boat for dear life as rescuers eventually whisk him off to safety.
Derek’s mom told a local news outlet that her son survived by holding onto the skiff for days, but his brother and cousin drowned, along with the ship’s captain. It’s unclear why the boat capsized.
The harrowing experience began Friday, when Derek reportedly went fishing for halibut on a boat with his sibling, Sidney Kulowiyi, 35, and their cousin. According to news reports, the trio was supposed to return to St. Lawrence Island, about 160 miles from mainland Alaska, at last Sunday.
However, they never made it back, and Alaska State Troopers were reportedly notified by officials in their family’s hometown of Savoonga on St. Lawrence Island.
The state troopers then contacted the Coast Guard, which launched a rescue mission with the Alaska Air National Guard units and several other agencies.
But the rescue crews ran into a heavy fog, prompting them to call off the search Sunday and resume the operation Monday morning once weather conditions improved.
That’s when the Coast Guard spotted Derek holding onto the capsized boat, and rescue crews saved him.
