Chinese woman swept to sea while swimming at Japanese beach rescued after 37 hours
- The swimmer, in her 20s, drifted over 80km in an inflatable float ring before she was spotted by sailors and airlifted back to land
A Chinese woman who was swept out to sea while swimming at a Japanese beach was rescued 37 hours later after drifting in an inflatable swim ring more than 80km (50 miles) in the Pacific Ocean, officials said on Thursday.
Japan’s coastguard launched a search for the woman, identified only as a Chinese national in her 20s, after receiving a call Monday night from her friend saying she had disappeared while swimming at Shimoda, about 200km (125 miles) southwest of Tokyo.
She was probably swept out to sea by a current and an evening seaward wind from the mountains and her swim ring made it more difficult to move against the wind, experts said.
The woman was spotted by a cargo ship early Wednesday, about 36 hours after she disappeared off the southern tip of Boso Peninsula, the coastguard said. The cargo ship asked a passing LPG tanker, the Kakuwa Maru No 8, to help.
Two of its crew members jumped into the sea and rescued the woman, officials said. She was airlifted by a coastguard helicopter to land, they said.
In a video released by the Japanese coastguard, the woman – dry and wrapped in a pale blue blanket – stood on the deck of the tanker with a crew member who stood by her in case she lost her balance, while others quietly looked on.