As we were enjoying the sunshine and calm seas 80 miles off of the coast of Peru this afternoon, there was an announcement saying that the captain had seen a small fishing vessel waving a white flag, and was changing course to investigate. The code of conduct on the high seas dictates assistance be given to vessels in distress.
Eventually our photographer, Grace, was able to communicate with them from the bow (she has healthy lungs! -- they apparently had no radio) and we learned that their fresh water tank had ruptured, and they needed food and water. The 8-man crew was to start home tomorrow, but it would take a week before they got back.
We watched as our crew gathered up 35 gallons of bottled water, and several bags of bananas, apples, pears and bread to supplement their supplies. The procedure of transferring these things was very interesting -- we knew when they weren't able to reach the line that the food was tied to, and we also knew by the cheers when they were successful! Our cruise director jokingly announced that we were only charging them the crew rate for the water!
Feeling happy that we were able to help them, the captain turned around again, assuring us that this short delay would not affect our schedule, and we waved back as the fishing vessel sailed off into the sunset.
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