Working Vacation
In March 2019, 30-
Setting Sail
The two brothers sailed south, along the coast of New Zealand at around 2 pm. The conditions of the ocean were rough that day, but the brothers were sure that the yacht was strong enough to sustain the waves. Everything was going fine for a while until a mainsheet onboard had come loose. When this happened, the boom rotated suddenly and knocked Arne overboard.
Tangled In the Rope
When Arne fell overboard, his arm got tangled in the rope. Arne was being pulled along the vessel, and he was struggling to free himself. The water was raging around him, and the rope was hurting his arm. What had him even more panicked was the fact that he wasn’t wearing a life preserver. He knew that once he freed himself, he would never be able to stay afloat.
The Force Of the Water
The force of the water loosened the rope around Arne’s arm. As he felt it start to get loose, and he tried to grab on to the rope, but it was too late. He was adrift in the water with just his clothes on his back. The sea was rough, and the waves were pushing him under the water. It wasn’t long before panic began to set it.
Helge
Helge saw what happened and immediately tried to save his brother. He knew that the condition of the water was too dangerous for him to jump in also, so he deployed a rescue device. Unfortunately, it was too late. Arne had been dragged out far from the boat. The rescue device wouldn’t reach him. He decided that he had to take the whole boat out to sea to reach his brother.
Engine Failure
Helge went to steer the boat in the direction of his brother when suddenly the engine failed. Helge had no idea how to repair an engine failure. He knew his brother was lost at sea and there was nothing that he could do about it. Arne and Helge both knew how dire the situation was.
A Life-Saving Idea
Arne knew that it was up to him to save himself. As he was fighting to stay afloat, he remembered something that he had once seen that is used by Navy SEALs, and he knew that it was his only chance to stay alive. He took off his jeans and filled them with air. To do this, he put them in and out of the water quickly. When his jeans were filled with air, he tied the ends to keep the air from escaping. He turned his jeans into a life preserver to keep him above water until help came.
Continued Troubles
With Helge on the boat calling for help, it was up to Arne to keep himself afloat with his makeshift flotation device. The air was slowly coming out of the jeans, so he kept having to refill it. The water was freezing, and it was making it difficult for him to keep refilling the jeans. It was then that he thought about his daughter. She was just 10-months-old, and he didn’t want her to be left without a father. He also didn’t want his wife to be a widow, so he fought with everything that he had. He knew that he had to stay alive for them.
Helicopters
Helge’s distress calls were answered, and a helicopter was flying above. Unfortunately, the waves were so choppy that they blocked the pilot’s view of Arne. He refused to give up, and he continued to fight. Finally, when the helicopter came around a third time, they spotted him. They let down a ladder, and Arne climbed to safety.
Saved
After this man went overboard into the ocean, he avoided drowning by using a Navy SEALs trick. Had he not remembered this trick, there is a good chance that he wouldn’t be alive today. His wife would have been a widow, and his daughter would have grown up without a father. Fortunately, his quick thinking saved his life. The men got the engine of the boat fixed, and managed to get it to its destination. For the rest of the trip, Arne wore his life jacket.
