Nov 07 - Gibraltarian Man Among Group Of Explorers Rescued In Mexican Jungle
A Gibraltarian man and his fellow explorers survived in a Mexican jungle for five days eating just peanuts and raw fish and drinking water from a river after a boat which was carrying their food and equipment capsized.
Jon Bonfiglio, who is 42, was the expedition leader for a team which set off on October 17th by canoe on the Candelaria river in the state of Campeche, Mexico.
The purpose of the Candelaria journey, as part of Ninth Wave Global (an environmental consultancy) was to explore this unfamiliar territory for the first time with a small, experienced team for two days as an introduction to the river.
However, due to unexpected rapids and many more waterfalls than anticipated, conditions became treacherous and one boat containing food and equipment was capsized and lost.
Realising they were unable to turn back in these conditions, they abandoned the second boat to try and exit the jungle on foot. After some searching, the team decided the safest option was to stop walking and wait for help to arrive. Having lost most of their possessions in the river, the explorers drank river water and ate raw fish caught in a mosquito net in order to survive. After the intended two days of the journey had passed, the rest of the team at Ninth Wave in Campeche raised the alarm and, on Friday October 22nd, the explorers were found by a local search team who helped them get out of the jungle to food, clean water and a bed for the night. The team reached safety on Saturday October 23rd.
The Ninth Wave team is currently embarked on another journey on the Usumacinta river in southern Mexico, embedded with local communities and travelling by river on traditional canoes.
Jon Bonfiglio said: “We always get informed and speak to locals before going on any new journey, but sometimes what you read and hear doesn’t match with what you end up experiencing. It’s interesting in this day and age that there are still places off the map which are largely unexplored, and that still have the ability to surprise – but it’s never a place or a thing, it’s how we react that’s in our grasp.
“The team of four who were lost in the jungle were incredible, always positive, helpful and calm, and it was our collective strength which got us through.”
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