The story of a 47 year old man of the Dominican RepublicLeft Lost at sea for almost a month. In all this time he has fed himself Ketchup and little else: this is a detail that has driven the well-known brand Heinz try to track him down to get him a present.
Missing at sea for a month: survived thanks to ketchup
The story, narrated by CNN, has the Dominican sailor as the protagonist Elvis Francois. In December the man was staying on the Dutch side of the island Saint MartinIn Lesser Antillesand made repairs to his boat.
However, the boat was pulled offshore and from that moment a real nightmare began for the 47-year-old. Lacking sufficient navigation skills, he was unable to return to shore and spent 24 days at sea.
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According to sources, he told the Colombian authorities who rescued him that thanks to this he was able to survive a bottle of ketchup, garlic powder he was born in dice dice which he mixed with water. A scarce sustenance, but enough to resist him until help arrives.
How 47-year-old Elvis Francois was rescued
Luckily, the man’s misfortune turned out to be good: in fact, he is said to have managed to save him by engraving the words “Help” on the hull. A passing plane northwest of Puerto Bolivarsay the Colombian authorities saw him and took him back to the mainland.
His story went around the world and the news also reached spice industry giant Heinz. The US agribusiness company, which found out about a man who survived thanks to a bottle of ketchup, is trying to contact him.
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He did so via a social media post and press release himself shared with CNN, asking for help locating Elvis Francois, who appeared unreachable after a month at sea.
Heinz wants to give him a new boat
But why is the company looking for the 47-year-old? to make him a huge gift, seemingly. In the post shared on the official profiles, they ask for help in tracking down “an amazing man with an amazing story” and doing something for him.
Specifically, it says that Heinz “wants to celebrate his safe return and help him buy him a new boat“. The intent, therefore, is to repay him for the lost boat by fitting him with one with navigational technology that will protect him from future disasters.
Posted by Heinz on Instagram
The company contacted the Dominican and Colombian authorities but could not locate him. He therefore launched an appeal on social media and the hashtag #FindTheKetchupBoatGuyand asked the web community to help them find Elvis.
Image source: iSTOCK