Six out of the eight rescued Indonesian boat ‘KM Aleluya’ crew enjoy freshly cooked rice and fish in their boat. The crew was stranded on the boat and were out of food or water for week. US coast rescued them last week, they now reside at Sacred Heart Church awaiting for their passport that is being sent by Indonesian authorities so they can return back home.

After a week without food or potable drinking water, the survivor of Indonesian boat that was rescued last week by US coast guard and Marine Law Enforcement gave a glimpse into the uncertainty they faced while they were stranded on their boat named ‘KM Aleluya’.

Musamial who is one of the eight people rescued expressed gratitude as he ate his bowl of rice with fish sitting in the damaged boat that drifted from Indonesia to Palau.

According to the Marine Law Enforcement report, the crew departed Indonesia on July 17 and proceeded to fish. A week later, on their voyage back to Indonesia, they encountered an engine problem and began to drift.

In broken English, Musamial told the Island Times that his crew had no food or water supply for almost a week and that they had to consume the sea water in small quantities to survive.

Musamial has two children and one of them is an infant. Even though the boat was stuck in the middle of an ocean, he believed that someone would find the crew. He managed to speak with his wife and children on Sunday this week.

“I miss him, my son and wife. I want to go home, Indonesia,” Musamial said.

Marta who volunteers at Sacred hearts Church that provided accommodation to the crew said that the crew would be provided with some more food items. (By Eshan Kalyanikar)