Saario hoped that the fire would go out.
Jari Saario’s boat’s battery caught fire. Jari Saario’s album
A solo rower rescued on Sunday Jari Saario published in the evening Video on Instagramin which he explained in more detail what happened at sea.
Even before the video, it was known that the rudder of Saario’s boat had been damaged in rough seas.
– When I felt that the rudder was not steering, I had to check it, Saario began.
Saario could not keep the safety harness on when he went to check the condition of the rudder.
– If I’m so unlucky that the boat turns upside down then I have to pull myself away and hope that the boat starts to turn. So it went, but the boat tipped because there was so much water on the other side.
Saario started emptying his boat of water. The boat capsized twice, as a result of which water got into the boat’s batteries. The batteries caught fire.
– I just hoped that I could empty my fire extinguisher there. Battery fires don’t normally go out that easily.
– That’s when I also launched my life raft, because I knew that if the whole boat caught fire, I would have very little time to act.
At the same time, Saario raised the alarm. At that point, he knew the game was up.
– When I don’t have electricity anymore, I’m really in seasickness.
Kudos to the captain and crew
Saario was in distress at sea on Friday. He was rescued the night before Sunday on the Cymona Eagle ship.
Saario, who is mentally and physically well, has received the treatment he needs on board and is now being monitored.
Saario continued to talk about it on the side of Instagram stories.
– When I knew that the ship was already close, I fired two emergency rockets. They said it was a really good thing. When I saw the ship, I knew that nothing was clear yet.
– It is super difficult to board such a 200-meter cargo ship from a boat. They threw cloths at me and tried to catch the strings. I already drove all the way to the back. Then at the last minute I caught one of the strings. It would have taken maybe 30 minutes to turn such a ship in that weather.
With “hard work”, the crew was able to pull Saario with ropes and a net.
– How professional the captain is on this ship. How he managed to steer a huge ship next to a small boat so that they could throw me a rope. Absolutely amazing professionalism.
The crew has accepted the delay caused by the operation well.
– They feel that they have saved a life. There is a super friendly gang here. I feel privileged that they came to my rescue.
Saari’s Clayton rowing boat was left in the open sea.
Now Saario is traveling on Cymone Eagle to Kapkapunki, from where he will start his journey home to Finland. According to a preliminary estimate, the ship is scheduled to be in Cape Town on Friday, January 16.