An incredible story of survival — one man managed to endure 60 hours trapped deep underwater after the boat he was on sunk to the bottom of the ocean.
Divers thought they were on a recovery mission looking for bodies until… “He’s alive, he’s alive.” Harrison Okene was found in a four-foot pocket of air, sitting in fridged water and wearing only a pair of boxers. (Via WVEC)
The tugboat where Okene worked as a cook actually capsized 20 miles off the Nigerian coast in May but the video was only just released and has since gone viral. After he was found the divers first used hot water to warm him up.
“Okene was eventually fitted with a scuba mask and brought to the surface. Of the 12-man crew, he was the only survivor.” (Via NBC)
For the almost three days 29-year-old Okene was trapped, he survived on only one bottle of Coca-Cola. After being taken to the surface he had to spend another 60 hours in a decompression chamber. (Via MSNBC)
He told The Nation Bible verses and thoughts of his family also kept him going as he sat in the pitch black water accompanied by what he said sounded like fish fighting over food.
“I said so this is how I am going to die? What would happen to my wife? ... I don’t even have a child yet. What about my mother and everybody I love? So, I will never see them again!”
That's something his family thought too, as they were told Okene had died. Authorities still don't know what caused the boat to sink or how Okene’s air pocket lasted so long without filling with water.
