The lonely sailor Steven Callahan was shipwrecked in 1982 while he was crossing the Atlantic Ocean after leaving from the Canary Islands. The "Napoleon Solo" was only 6.5 meters and on January 29, during a small storm, the ship crashed with a whale. Before sinking the boat, Callahan had enough time to get on the lifeboat and to put on board some emergency equipment, being able to save a first aid kit, nautical charts, smoke flares, a sleeping bag, a harpoon, a cushion, some food, 4 liters of water, two solar distillers and Dougal Robertson's survival manual. The lifeboat traveled more than 1,500 miles through the Atlantic Ocean for 76 days. He tells how he had to collect water from the rain, fish and hunt birds to survive. During the 76th day he spotted some ships but they could not see the flares and signals made from the small life raft. The 20 of April of 1982, he managed to find the the Island of Marie Galante. After this hard experience, Steven Callahan began writing survival books.

Imagine you were in a ship and a storm destroyed it, you are the last survivor and your question is… And now what? This blog will tell you how to survive in the worst conditions in the ocean just with the survival kit of your lifeboat.

The survival kit consists of: Life jackets, a first aid kit, a fire extinguisher, a bucket, a compass, a EPIRB or Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, a red flare, a rocket parachute flare, a smoke signal flare, a laser pointer, a lighter, a lantern, a multi-tool and/or Swiss army knife, a fishing kit, a rainwater collection equipment, a seawater desalination kit, emergency high-calorie rations/food and a hatchet.

The first thing you need to do is to care about any land or a ship near you that can help you and if not, you need to start with the seawater desalination kit and the fishing kit. Because you will run out of food and water very quickly. You need to wear always the life jacket because if you fall off from the lifeboat you (probably) won't get on the boat again. Before doing anything, activate the EPIRB, this will advice anyone that have a radio receiver that you need help and will (maybe) help you. If you see or hear a boat or a plane. Quickly light the smoke signal flare and the red flare and move it up and down to them to see you. And good luck! (or not).