Stranded Ghanaian fishermen survived on fresh fish, burnt canoe wood at sea
A 29-year-old Ghanaian fisherman has recounted how he and six colleagues survived nearly two weeks at sea after their canoe’s outboard motor broke down, leaving them without adequate food and drinking water.
Kwamena Nkum said the fishermen’s provisions ran out five days after the engine failure, forcing them to depend on fish they caught and eventually burn parts of their canoe to prepare meals.
The seven men, all from Sekondi, embarked on a fishing expedition to Axim in the Western Region on October 9, 2026, aboard a canoe named Second Chance.
Their journey took a dangerous turn three days later when the outboard motor stopped working. Efforts to repair the engine proved unsuccessful, leaving them stranded at sea.
“We usually spend five days at sea, but this time, our motor became faulty on the third day. It just went off. We tried to fix it, but it didn’t work. Our food and water got finished,” Mr Nkum recounted.
He said the fishermen resorted to drinking seawater after their supplies were exhausted, boiling it in an attempt to reduce its salt concentration.
They initially ate fish from their catch, but some of the fish spoiled and had to be discarded. The men subsequently used hooks and lines to catch fresh fish for food.
Mr Nkum said the fishermen had fuel and matches to make fire but eventually ran out of charcoal, compelling them to burn wood taken from their canoe to cook.
After drifting for several days, the men eventually sighted land during the night. One fisherman who was still awake alerted the others.
They switched on their mobile phones and later received a call from a friend, Kingsley, who was in contact with people back home.
Mr Nkum said they contacted their fishing leaders and attempted to establish their location. Although they initially believed they were in Togo, they later discovered they had drifted into Beninese waters.
“We had no food left. We were very hungry,” he said.
According to him, Kingsley and the fishing leaders contacted the chief fisherman in Benin, who provided the stranded men with food and water.
The fishermen subsequently received assistance from local fishing communities and the Beninese and Togolese navies.
They were eventually handed over to the Ghana Navy by a Togolese naval vessel at the Ghana-Togo maritime border on October 21, 2026.
The men later arrived safely at the Fishing Harbour in Tema following a joint search-and-rescue operation.
The fishermen were identified as Kofi Emmanuel, 32; Uncle Amoah, 45; Kwamena Nkum, 29; Kofi Aboagye, 36; Doboa, 35; Agya Badu, 42; and Kwamena Akyem, 40.
Reflecting on the ordeal, Mr Nkum said carrying a second outboard motor could have helped prevent the emergency from escalating, stressing the importance of having backup equipment for fishing expeditions.
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