How not to die on a capsized boat in the Atlantic

After capsizing off the coast of Galicia, Spain, the 62-year-old French skipper Laurent Camprubi was trapped inside the boat. He was saved by his cold blood, a survival suit and an air bubble formed underwater.

Surviving in an emergency situation at sea is a matter of willpower, preparation, experience and approach to navigation. Then there are always the flukes that sometimes make the difference between life and death. As happened to French skipper Laurent Camprubi who managed to survive for 16 hours in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean thanks to a small air bubble left in his boat that had capsized.

The 62-year-old sailor had set sail from Lisbon, Portugal, on Sunday, July 31 aboard his Class40. But after only a few hours of sailing during the evening of Monday, August 1, his boat capsized. The accident occurred when the sailor was about 15 nautical miles from the Sisargas Islands off the coast of Galicia in northwestern Spain. Camprubi was inside when the hull capsized, and in that desperate situation he realized that an air bubble had formed inside his boat.

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The air bubble allowed him to breathe underwater

Despite being completely submerged in the cold ocean waters, he thus managed to launch the mayday that was immediately intercepted Spanish rescue teams and continue to breathe while waiting for rescue. When the Spanish Coast Guard arrived at the scene of the accident, they quickly located the boat and ascertained that the skipper was alive. Here, too, Camprubi’s resourcefulness was decisive, as he made himself known to divers by beating shots from inside the hull. In that instant the French skipper realized that he could be saved.

After that, however, seeing that the sea was too rough to proceed with rescue operations, the operators decided to attach large floating balloons to the boat to prevent it from sinking; postponing the rescue operation until the next day.

In the end, rescue operations were not completed until the morning of Tuesday, August 2. Laurent Camprubi who was fortunately also wearing a neoprene survival suit was transported to the hospital for medical checks. Subsequently, his boat was refloated.