10-year-old boy from Hainan falls asleep while fishing at sea and drifts for a day before being rescued.

Recently, in Hainan, a 10-year-old boy drifted out to sea on a small boat while fishing alone and accidentally fell asleep. After drifting at sea for a day and a night, he was rescued by some fishermen out at sea.

On March 22, a video of fishermen rescuing a child at sea went viral online.

The video shows a 10-year-old boy drifting at sea after falling asleep while fishing for squid on a small wooden boat, eventually drifting all the way to Sanya. The man filming the video couldn’t help but exclaim, “The younger generation is fearless.”

According to the rescuer, Xiao Yang, who spoke to Cover News, on the afternoon of the 22nd, he was accompanying customers on a fishing trip at sea, about 10 nautical miles off the coast of Haibei Bay in Sanya. They spotted a green small wooden boat floating on the sea from afar, heard cries for help, sailed over to it, and found a child on board. Along with his fishing friends, they brought the child safely aboard. The boy explained that he had gone out fishing and playing, and had accidentally been swept away by the waves, losing his way home.

Xiao Yang mentioned that when they rescued the child, his skin was already sunburnt. After eating bread and drinking milk, the boy gradually recounted what had happened. He mentioned that he was 10 years old and had been fishing near Chiling Village, Li Autonomous County in Lingshui the evening before, falling asleep unintentionally and getting carried away by the waves, drifting further and further out to sea. He also mentioned that he had encountered passing ships along the way, shouting for help loudly, but due to the loud noise of their engines, no one heard him.

Considering that the child’s parents must have been anxiously searching for him, Xiao Yang immediately turned the boat around and informed the authorities.

According to Southern Daily, the boy safely returned home on the night of the 22nd. The boy’s father remarked, “He didn’t even tell me where he was going to play. He went out at 8:30 p.m. on the 21st and didn’t return at night. The family searched for him all night, and by 9 a.m. on the 22nd, we had already reported him missing to the police.”

A map search shows that Haibei Bay in Sanya and Chiling Village in Lingshui County are both located by the seaside with a distance of over 30 kilometers on land between them.

The news of the 10-year-old boy drifting alone at sea for a day and a night quickly became a hot topic online, with netizens commenting, “This naughty child is really impressive.” “The kid is amazing, isn’t he? Even people in their twenties don’t have his courage, let alone his strong mentality. A 10-year-old on a small boat with a paddle drifting in the boundless sea for a day and a night—it would be terrifying for me.” “He’s the second ‘Robinson Crusoe’.” “It’s like a real-life fantasy drift saga.”

Some also expressed relief, saying, “Luckily, he drifted in the left direction. If he had drifted to the right, it would have been extremely unpredictable.” “As long as the child is safe, that’s what matters! Let’s be more careful next time.”