By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-10-02 17:12:00 | Updated at 2024-10-03 23:25:28
1 day ago
Two women have shared the chilling details of how they survived after the boat they were traveling on sank in a Brazilian sea and left two people missing, including one of their friends.
Camila de Carvalho, 20, and Vanessa da Silva, 35, told G1 news outlet they spent Sunday celebrating a friend's birthday on a yacht, drinking and riding jet skis in Guarujá, a city in the southeastern state of São Paulo, and had planned to continue the festivities at a seaside club on Porchat Island before returning to home to Santos by land when tragedy struck.
The party guests were divided into two small vessels and were traveling to the coastal town of São Vicente when it was rocked by a wave. The impact of this ejected the occupants, including their friend Aline de Amorim, 37, and Beatriz Faria, 27, who are still missing.
De Carvalho recalled that they attempted to get back on the boat when it began to sink and that the pilot began spreading three life jackets and two gallons of gasoline as a method to keep everyone from drowning.
Camila de Carvalho told Brazilian news outlet G1 that she and the four survivors 'were born again' after the small boat they were traveling on sank off the coast of the southeastern city of São Vicente on Sunday. Two people, including her friend Aline de Amorim, were still missing as of Wednesday
Vanessa da Silva recalled how she and another woman were grabbing on to the same life jacket after a wave slammed into their small boat and ejected them and five other people into the sea before a current drifted them towards an area filled with rocks, where firefighters rescued them
As she struggled to put the life jacket on, a strong current dragged her and the pilot towards a rocky area as waves continued to pound over them.
She and the young man held on to the rocks and swallowed water as they fought to save themselves from being pulled back into the sea.
'Then, I watched the boy [pilot] almost drown there, I couldn't go back to save him. He disappeared and I started screaming 'help, help', then he appeared,' de Carvalho said.
De Carvalho and the pilot were able to get out and were met by paramedics near a trail.
'We were born again, SAMU (Mobile Emergency Attendance Service) told us,' she said. 'The waves were very strong, we almost died. We didn't know how to swim.'
Beatriz Faria is one of two women who are still missing after they were thrown off a boat that sank off the coast of São Vicente, a city in the southeastern Brazil state of São Paulo on Sunday
Aline de Amorim, a mother-of-one, is still missing. Authorities resumed a search mission Wednesday morning
Da Silva remembered how she and one of the boat occupants, whom she did not know, were holding on to one life jacket.
All she could think was how she was going to save herself as the strong current dragged her to the rocks near Porchat Island, where a firefighter rescued her.
'There came a time when no one could see anyone in the water. I was fighting for my life,' da Silva told the news portal.
Four of the five survivors were taken to a local medical facility for treatment. De Carvalho received stitches for a cut on her head.
Aline de Amorim shared a picture of herself that was taken on the party yacht hours before she disappeared when a different vessel she was on capsized
Camila de Carvalho posted a photo of herself on a jet ski hours before a boat she was traveling on with six other people was hit by a wave and sank off the coast of the southeastern Brazilian city of São Vicente
De Carvalho and da Silva have had difficulty accepting how de Amorim disappeared since she was wearing a life jacket.
'Five people managed to reach that rock, and she was wearing a life jacket. So, the hope is that she is there,' da Silva said.
De Carvalho saw one of the male survivors also saw de Amorim with the vest while adding one of them saw Faria after they were thrown off the boat.
The Maritime Fire Brigade resumed a search for the de Amorim, who has a 17-year-old son, and Tavares on Wednesday.
Two rescue boats and a jet ski were deployed to the area known as the 'Devil's Throat,' where the accident took place.
The area is a favorite for those who enjoy surfing because of the waves despite the dangerous currents.
