What happens when a shipwreck survivor finds himself alone on a tiny wooden raft in the middle of the ocean? For Poon Lim, a Chinese sailor, the answer was an incredible 133-day fight for survival. Serving as a steward aboard a British Merchant Navy Ship that was torpedoed in November 1942, Lim endured one of the longest solo ordeals at sea ever recorded. Roughly 75 years ago, on April 5, 1943, Brazilian fishermen pulled him from the waters off the coast of Brazil.

The Sinking

On November 23, 1942, Poon Lim was aboard the SS Benlomond when a German ship sent a torpedo crashing into the vessel. The ship went down approximately 1200 km east of the mouth of the Amazon River, sinking in a mere two minutes and leaving only a handful of survivors. Before the boilers could explode, Lim managed to grab a life jacket and throw himself into the sea. Though he was an unskilled swimmer, he spent two hours in the water before locating a wooden raft. Out of the 6 people who survived the initial explosion, Poon Lim would be the only one to eventually make it back to land.

Surviving On the Ocean

The wooden raft held a modest cache of supplies — milk, biscuits, and water — which Poon Lim found upon climbing aboard. Once those provisions were exhausted, he kept himself alive by catching fish and collecting rainwater using his life jacket.

During one of his fishing attempts, Poon Lim managed to hook a shark — but the creature turned on him, attacking him right there on the raft. Lim fought back, bludgeoning the shark to death with a water container. Having been without fresh water for some time, he resorted to drinking the blood from the shark's liver.

The Rescue

Twice, Poon Lim spotted potential rescuers on the horizon. The first group sailed right past him without stopping, and a storm foiled the second rescue attempt before it could succeed.

Finally, on April 5, 1943, Brazilian fishermen found and rescued Poon Lim. Remarkably, even after losing 20 pounds during his time at sea, he was able to walk on his own the moment he was brought ashore. Within about three days, he had recovered enough to share the full story of his ordeal.

Life After The Rescue

Poon Lim spent four weeks recuperating in a hospital as the British Consul made arrangements to send him home. Upon his return, he was awarded a British Empire Medal. When WW2 ended, Lim set his sights on moving to the US, only to discover that the quota for Chinese immigrants had already been filled. In the end, however, the fame surrounding his remarkable survival story helped him secure passage to emigrate.