Erica, 17, from the Azeitao area, missing since late Saturday at sea on Coelho beach in Vila Real de Santo António, was found alive this Sunday afternoon. The young woman was spotted by a freighter, who informed the authorities of the incident.
The young woman was on top of a surfboard 25 miles — about 46 kilometers — south of the coast, authorities said.
She was found in a state of extreme hypothermia and taken by helicopter to the hospital de Faro.
Erica was on the board when the wind pushed her, preventing her from returning to the beach.
An aircraft from the Air Force and the Spanish Institute of Shipwrecks helped in the search for the young woman.
According to a report from the Harbor Master of Vila Real de Santo António, who coordinated the search, the wind was blowing from the north and the young woman went in “in a kind of panic/fright and didn’t row”, which meant that “the wind caught and he started move south.”
“Father even tried to jump into the water, but, unfortunately, he could not grab it, he did not have the physical ability to reach the board,” said captain Joao Afonso Martins.
From the moment of receiving information about the disappearance, “every possible means available were involved, of which there were many,” assured the person in charge.
Author: Rui Pando Gomes, Portuguese This Sergio A. Vitorino
Source: CM Jornal
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