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Bulkcarrier saved teenager who was 49 days adrift on a wooden fish trap
The "Arpeggio" has saved Aldi Novel Adilang, an Indonesian teenager who survived 49 days adrift at sea after the wooden fish trap he was employed slipped its moorings. He ran out of food within a week and survived on fish and seawater he squeezed from his clothing. He turned on a lamp every time he sighted another ship. The 18-year-old was rescued off Guam on Aug 31, 2018, about 1,200 miles from his original location, and returned to Indonesia with officials in September. He was employed since age 16 in the one of the world’s loneliest jobs: lamp lighter on a rompong — a wooden raft with a hut on top that’s lit at night to attract fish — which was moored about 78 miles off the coast of North Sulawesi. Supplies including food and fuel for a generator are dropped off about once a week. The minders, who earn $130 a month, communicate with fishing boats by hand-held radio. Adilang’s portable radio proved to be a lifesaver. In the early morning of Aug 31he saw the ship and lighted up the lamp and shouted ‘help’ using the HT. “The ship had passed about one mile but then it turned aronud. The "Arpeggio" contacted the Indonesian mission in Japan when it docked in Tokuyama and officials from the Osaka consulate collected him on Sep 6. He returned to Indonesia on Sep 8. He had been on the raft for one month and 18 days. When it didn’t rain for days he had to soak my clothes in the sea, then I squeezed and drank the water. The boy’s father, Alfian Adilang, said the family is overjoyed at his return but angry with his employer. It was the third time the teen’s raft had drifted. The previous two times it had been rescued by the owner’s ship. The rafts are anchored with ropes, and strong friction caused them to break. Adilang no longer wanted to work on a rompong. Report with photos: https://www.boston.com/news/world-news/2018/09/24/aldi-novel-adilang-indonesian-teenager-drifting-at-sea https://twitter.com/i/moments/1044424374059622401
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