A fisherman has been rescued after spending 15 days trapped about 100 meters underground, in a water-filled hole. Erasto Crisanto Valdez disappeared on July 23 while fishing with his father in a cenote in San Francisco La Paz, Mexico.
After more than two weeks without any trace, rescue teams considered the 31-year-old dead and were “prepared to find his body”
But the opposite happened. According to reports, Erasto was trapped in a cave, in an air pocket more than 100 meters underground.
He was found on Thursday by an international team of explorers from Mexico, Germany, the United States and the Dominican Republic, after enduring weeks of cold and humidity in the darkness of the cave.
Mexican explorer Carlos Jiménez described the discovery as a miracle, saying that “God had other plans” for this lucky man.
In an interview with NMás, Erasto said: “Thank God for giving me another chance to live and for allowing me to see my children and family again. “It was a miracle, an incredible miracle.”
After his disappearance, a search operation was launched immediately, but without result. Six days after the search began, rescue teams found Erastos’ fishing pole.
Valdez was taken to the hospital after more than two weeks without food had caused him to become severely dehydrated.