Young Man Found Alive After Three Days Lost at Sea

Rescued alive 15 nautical miles off Gran Canaria after disappearing while searching for a jet ski

Maritime Rescue rescued the young man alive at about 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday. He had gone missing on the night of last Monday near the Juan Grande Thermal Power Plant on Gran Canaria while looking for a jet ski, and was located roughly fifteen nautical miles from the island.

According to the state agency, the search aircraft Sasemar 103 spotted the youngster and signaled to him on the third day of the operation, southwest of Arguineguín.

The Las Palmas Coordination Center then deployed the crew of the Guardamar Urania and the Helimer 215, which arrived in the area around 12:40 p.m.

The maritime unit rescued the man in apparently good health, suffering only mild chest discomfort from having lain on the jet ski’s hull. He was taken to the Arguineguín dock, arriving at about 13:20 p.m.

Maritime Rescue recalled that the alert was raised on Monday night when the 112 Canarias emergency line informed the Las Palmas CCS that a group of friends were on a motorboat towing a jet ski.

When they approached the Juan Grande power plant, the jet ski broke free. One of the friends jumped onto the jet ski intending to bring it back to shore (Salinas del Matorral), while the others continued sailing the motorboat toward the island. Upon returning to the coastal area, they could not locate their companion nor the jet ski.