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SINGAPORE – Trapped alone in the Pacific seas on his damaged catamaran with nowhere to dock, and with a satellite phone as his only means of contacting his family, the three-year expedition of a Singaporean sailor went awry just three months after set sail in February.
But the 59-year-old man, who wanted to be known only as Mr. Wong, told The Straits Times that he felt he had no option to panic.
“When you’re in the ocean, how can you fear? It doesn’t make sense,” he said in a phone interview on Saturday (May 2).
The sailor was finally brought ashore to Fiji by a Fiji Navy patrol boat on April 29, after more than a month at sea.
Their situation was highlighted last Thursday in a Facebook post by Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who thanked the Fijian government for its help and “went out of its way to help” the Singapore sailor, who had been rejected by several countries. who closed their borders due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Wong, who was under observation in a Fiji hospital for two days and was released, told ST that he feels well and healthy.
You can return to your yacht, called Ximula, but you are prohibited from leaving Fiji for at least another month due to the closure measures of the island nation.
Wong, the owner of a furniture manufacturing company in Singapore, set sail on February 2 with two friends.
Inspired by another friend who had sailed from the United States to Polynesia, he intended to sail to Polynesia for four months and then spend the next “two or three years sailing” through the picturesque region.
But with the worsening pandemic and nations closing borders, he soon struggled.
After leaving the Indonesian coastal city of Jayapura alone on March 19 (his two companions had left as scheduled due to work commitments), he later learned that his destination, neighboring Papua New Guinea, had closed its border.
He tried to dock in the Solomon Islands, some 2,000 km away, but was also rejected. He tried to reach Tuvalu, another 2,000 km away, but was told that he was unable to dock even before reaching his port on April 21.
“By then, I had been at sea for almost a month and my supplies of diesel and food were running low,” said Wong, who managed to convince the Tuvalu authorities to allow him to buy some supplies. He spent $ 1,400 (S $ 1,980) on 1,000 liters of diesel and some food, and went on his way, unsure of where else he might go.
Worse still, his ability to drive safely was compromised as the rudder of his yacht was damaged by hitting a coral reef. The autopilot device on his yacht was also faulty.
“In those waters, it is difficult to navigate alone without the autopilot, especially when I need to use the bathroom, cook or sleep,” he explained.
With few options, he called his daughter with a satellite phone to seek help from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
Mr. Wong’s 31-year-old daughter, who asked not to be identified, told ST: “Our family was already concerned when some countries started rejecting her, and we panicked, but my father was calm, as he usually is.”
“The fact that he called and said that we should call MFA meant that the situation was quite urgent.”
He also contacted the parliamentarian in his constituency and received a swift assurance from the MFA that the matter was being addressed urgently.
Despite the unfortunate turn of events, Wong is still interested in continuing his planned expedition. An adventure seeker, he often sails the seas to explore little-known islands inhabited by “10 or 20 families,” where he says the islanders’ hospitality humbles him. In return, he takes photos of them and prints the photos on his mini printer for families as souvenirs.
His wife, daughter, and son would join him in Tahiti in June, but now they could go to Fiji. “For now, I will stay here, spend time to repair my yacht, and explore the mainland of Fiji,” said Wong, adding that this was his first time there.
“I am very grateful to everyone who has helped me, from the MFA in Singapore to the government of Fiji.”
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