SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KSWB/KUSI) — A solo voyage across the Pacific turned into a harrowing survival ordeal for a California man, who was rescued after spending about a month drifting at sea with no working communication and a severely damaged sailboat.
Kai Sato left the California coast on June 7 with plans to reach Hawaii, but roughly two weeks into the trip, disaster struck when his boat’s mast broke. His phone also stopped working after getting wet, leaving him unable to call for help, he told Hawaii News Now.
Sato tried to press on using the vessel’s motor, but that option disappeared when the fuel ran out. With no reliable way to steer or signal anyone, ocean currents pushed him away from the regular California-to-Hawaii shipping lanes.
“I cried for a whole week just drifting south, like miserable. I felt like I was going to just try to turn my motor on and suffocate from the carbon monoxide…I felt hopeless,” Sato said.
Determined to survive, Sato improvised with what he had onboard, using kayak paddles and other materials to fashion makeshift tools that helped guide the boat back toward busier waters. He stayed alive by drinking water collected from condensation on plastic bags and eating oatmeal, fish and squid.
His ordeal ended Tuesday of last week when a Pasha Hawaii ship spotted him and brought him aboard. Crew members gave Sato fresh clothes, food and a place to rest as the ship continued on to Hawaii.
Sato is reportedly still in Hawaii, staying with a relative as he prepares for the next leg of his trip to the Philippines — this time aboard a larger boat.
