A Brazilian fisherman was found clinging to a signal buoy Tuesday after falling into the ocean on Christmas Day.
David Soares, 43, told local news outlets that he swam in the Atlantic Ocean for four hours after falling off his boat on Dec. 25, the BBC reported. He eventually came across a signal buoy and managed to climb up the side and cling to it until he was rescued.
The fisherman’s journey started at Atafona beach, north of Rio de Janeiro, the BBC continued. He slipped and fell from his boat. He tried for 10 minutes to get back to it, but the current was so choppy that Soares gave up and let the water take him where it wanted, he told G1.
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“The water was choppy and it was windy … so I decided to let myself be carried along by the current in order to use less energy,” he said, according to the BBC. Soares then removed unnecessary clothing so he wasn’t weighed down. (RELATED: REPORT: Two Politicians Survive Horrific Helicopter Crash Caught On Camera In Brazil)
He believed he would die before help arrived, but two days into his stranding, a fisherman spotted him. The man and his crew had been searching for Soares, and reportedly cried when they found him alive, the BBC noted, citing journalist Joao Villa Real.