This man is not easily attributed to the outstanding "sea wolves", since he went out to sea only twice, both times on a boat without a rudder and without sails. However, his feat was one of the most outstanding achievements humanity in confrontation with the ocean.

Being a practicing doctor in a seaside hospital, Alain Baumbar was literally shocked by the fact that every year tens and even hundreds of thousands of people die at sea! And at the same time, a significant part of them died not from drowning, cold or hunger, but from fear, they died only because they believed in the inevitability of their death.

They were killed by despair, lack of will, apparent aimlessness to fight for their lives and the lives of their comrades in misfortune. “Victims of legendary shipwrecks who died prematurely, I know: it was not the sea that killed you, it was not hunger that killed you, it was not thirst that killed you! own experience strength of courage and self-confidence.

Every year, up to fifty thousand people die in boats and life belts, and at the same time, 90% of them die in the first three days! It is quite understandable that during shipwrecks, for whatever reason they occur, people get lost, they forget that the human body is able to live without water for ten days, and without food even up to thirty.

Like a doctor who knows the reserves well human body, Alain Bombard was sure that many people who, for one reason or another, were forced to leave the comfort of the ship and escape on boats, rafts or other improvised means, died long before they were left physical forces: Desperation killed them. And such a death overtook not only random people in the sea - passengers, but also those accustomed to the sea professional sailors. This habit was for them connected with the deck of the ship, reliable, although swaying. They are accustomed to looking at the sea from the height of the ship's hull. A ship is not just a means of transportation on water, it is also psychological factor, enclosing human psyche from fear of an alien element. On a ship, a person has confidence, the conviction that he is insured against possible accidents that all these accidents are foreseen by experienced ship designers and builders, that a sufficient amount of all kinds of food and water is prepared in the holds of the ship for the entire period of the voyage and even more ...

Not without reason, back in time sailing fleet they said that only whalers and hunters see the real sea fur seals, as they attack whales and seals in open ocean from small whaleboats and sometimes wander for a long time in the fog, carried away by sudden storm winds from their ship. These people rarely died: after all, they were prepared in advance to sail the sea on a boat for some time. They knew about it and were ready to overcome the elements on their fragile and yet reliable whaleboats.

Even having lost a ship in the open ocean for one reason or another, they traveled enormous distances and still came to land. True, not always either: if some died, it was only after many days of stubborn struggle, during which they did everything they could, exhausting the last forces of their body. All these people were mentally prepared for the need to spend some time on the boat. These were normal conditions their work.

Wanting to make unprepared people believe in themselves, in the ability to overcome both the forces of the elements and their apparent weakness, Alain Bombard is not a St. John's wort or a sailor, but an ordinary doctor set sail across the Atlantic Ocean in an ordinary inflatable boat.

He was sure that there is a lot of food in the sea and you just need to be able to get this food in the form of planktonic animals and plants or fish. He knew that all life-saving equipment on ships - boats, boats, rafts - have a set of lines, sometimes nets, they have certain tools for fishing for marine life, and finally, they can be made from improvised means. With their help, you can get food, since almost everything that our body needs is contained in marine animals. Even fresh water.

However, sea water, consumed in small quantities, can help a person save the body from dehydration. Let us recall that the Polynesians, who were sometimes blown away by hurricanes far from the earth, knew how to fight for their lives and, perhaps most importantly, accustomed their bodies to the consumption of sea water. Sometimes for weeks and months the boats of the Polynesians rushed across the stormy ocean, and yet the islanders survived by catching fish, turtles, birds, using the juices of these animals. In all this, they did not see anything special, since they were mentally prepared for such troubles. But the same islanders dutifully died on the shore with a full abundance of food, when it became known to them that someone had "bewitched" them. They believed in the power of witchcraft and therefore died. Because of fear!..

To the equipment of his rubber boat, Bombar added only a plankton net and a speargun.

The bomber chose an unusual route for himself - far from the sea routes of merchant ships. True, his "Heretic", as this boat was called, was supposed to go in the warm zone of the ocean, but this is a deserted zone. To the north and south are the routes of commercial ships.

Previously, as a preparation for this journey, he and his friend spent two weeks in the Mediterranean. For fourteen days they made do with what the sea gave them. The first experience of a long journey dependent on the sea was a success. Of course, and it was difficult, very difficult!

However, his comrade, by the way, is an experienced sailor who crossed Atlantic Ocean on a small yacht all alone, but supplied with everything you need in abundance, in last moment got scared and just disappeared. Two weeks was long enough for him to refuse to tempt fate any further. He assured that he believed in Bombard's idea, but he was scared away by the thought of the impending need to eat raw fish again, swallow the healing, but such a nasty plankton and drink the juice squeezed from the body of the fish, diluting it sea ​​water. Perhaps he was a brave sailor, but a man of a different stock than Bombar: he did not have the purposefulness of Bombar.

Bombard prepared for his voyage theoretically and mentally. As a physician, he knew that water was more important than food. And he examined dozens of fish species that he could meet in the ocean. These studies have shown that from 50 to 80% of the weight of the fish is water, and at the same time fresh, and also that the body marine fish contains significantly less salt than the meat of mammals.

Having carefully checked the amount of different salts dissolved in the water of the ocean, Bombar was convinced that, apart from table salt, then every 800 grams of sea water contains approximately the same amount of other salts as there is in a liter of different mineral waters. We drink these waters - often with great benefit. During his journey, Bombar became convinced that it was extremely important to prevent dehydration of the body in the early days, and then a decrease in water rations would not be detrimental to the body in the future. Thus, he supported his idea with scientific data.

Bombard had many friends, but there were also skeptics, ill-wishers, and people who were simply hostile to him. Not everyone understood the humanity of his idea. Newspapermen were looking for a sensation, and since there was none, they invented it. Experts were unanimously indignant: shipbuilders - that Bombar was going to cross the ocean in a boat that supposedly could not be controlled; sailors - by the fact that he is not a sailor, but come on ... the doctors were horrified that Bombar was going to live on seafood and drink sea ​​water.

As if challenging all his skeptics, Bombar called his boat "The Heretic"...

By the way, people who are well acquainted with the history of navigation and shipwrecks warmly supported the idea of ​​Bombard. Furthermore, they were confident in the success of the experiment.

Alain Bombard sailed across the ocean for sixty-five days. In the very first days, he refuted the assurances of "specialists" that there were no fish in the ocean. Many books about the oceans are full of such expressions as "desert ocean", "water desert"...

Bombar proved that this is far from the case! Just with big ships it was hard to notice life in the ocean. Another thing is on a raft or on a boat! From here you can observe the diverse life of the sea - life, sometimes unfamiliar, incomprehensible, full of surprises. The ocean is often deserted for many weeks of travel, but it is inhabited night and day by creatures that can be useful or harmful to man. rich animal world ocean, but little else we know it.

Alain Bombard proved that a person can do a lot if he really wants to and does not lose willpower. He is able to survive in the most difficult conditions in which he may accidentally find himself. Describing this unprecedented experiment on himself in the book "Overboard of his own free will", which sold millions of copies, Alain Bombard, perhaps saved tens of thousands of lives of those people who were alone with the hostile elements - and were not afraid.

On a single rubber boat under sail in 65 days practically no food or fresh water. The experience ended successfully. His feat was one of the most outstanding achievements of mankind in the confrontation with the ocean.

« Victims of legendary shipwrecks who died prematurely, I know it wasn't the sea that killed you, it wasn't hunger that killed you, it wasn't thirst that killed you! Swinging on the waves to the plaintive cries of seagulls, you died of fear».

(Alain Bombard)

Brief chronology

1952 Bombard set sail alone in a rubber boat across the Atlantic Ocean. The voyage lasted 65 days and was intended to prove that shipwrecked people could live for long periods at sea without food or water supplies, eating only what they could get from the sea. The experiment was a success

1953 edition books "Overboard at will"

1960 thanks to the Bombard experiment The London Navigation Safety Conference decided to equip ships with life rafts

Life story

This amazing person, French physician Alain Bombard, clearly and convincingly proved that in order to acquire a reputation as a great sea ​​traveler You don't have to be a sailor at all. Moreover, there is evidence that he did not even know how to swim. While working as a practicing physician in a seaside hospital, Dr. Bombar was literally shocked by the statistics that scary numbers. Every year, tens and hundreds of thousands of people die in the seas and oceans! The bomber was convinced that a significant part of them did not drown, did not die of cold or hunger. Being in boats and boats, kept on the water thanks to life belts and life jackets, most shipwrecked die in the first three days. As a doctor, he knew that the human body can live without water10 days, and without food even up to 30. “Victims of the legendary shipwrecks who died prematurely, I know: it was not the sea that killed you, it was not hunger that killed you, it was not thirst that killed you! Swinging on the waves to the plaintive cries of seagulls, you died of fear, ”Bombard said firmly, deciding to prove by his own experience the strength of courage and self-confidence.

Knowing well the reserves of the human body, Alain Bombard was sure that death from fear and despair overtook not only passengers of warships and comfortable liners, but also professional sailors. They are accustomed to looking at the sea from the height of the ship's hull. A ship is not just a means of transportation on water, it is also a psychological factor that protects the human psyche from fear of an alien element. On a ship, a person has confidence that he is insured against possible accidents provided by designers and shipbuilders, that a sufficient amount of any food and water is prepared in the holds of the ship for the entire period of navigation and even beyond that ...

But even in the days of the sailing fleet, it was said that only whalers and fur seal hunters see the real sea. They attack whales and seals in the open ocean from small whaleboats and sometimes wander for a long time in the fog, carried by storm winds from their ships. These people were prepared in advance for a long sea voyage on a boat and therefore died much less frequently. Even having lost a ship in the open ocean, they traveled enormous distances and still came to land. And if some died, it was only after many days of stubborn struggle, having exhausted the last forces of their body.

The French doctor Alain Bombard was sure that there is a lot of food in the sea and you just need to be able to get it in the form of fish or planktonic animals and plants. He knew that all rescue boats on ships had a set of fishing lines and even nets, that if necessary they could be made from improvised means. This means that food can be obtained, since almost everything that our body needs, including fresh water, is contained in marine animals. And even sea water, consumed in small quantities, can save the body from dehydration.

Alain Bombard knew well the power of suggestion and self-hypnosis. He knew that the Polynesians, sometimes blown far from land by hurricanes, could rush through the stormy ocean for weeks and months and still survive by catching fish, turtles, birds, using the juices of these animals - tasteless, even nasty, but saving from thirst and dehydration . In all this, the Polynesians did not see anything special, since they were mentally prepared for such troubles. But the same islanders who survived in the ocean meekly died on the shore with a full abundance of food when they found out that someone had “bewitched” them. They believed in the power of magic and died of self-hypnosis.

In order to make potential victims of shipwrecks believe in themselves, in a real opportunity to overcome both the forces of the elements and their apparent weakness, Alain Bombard set up an experiment on himself in 1952 - he went to sailing the atlantic ocean in an ordinary inflatable boat. Bombar added only a plankton net and a speargun to her equipment. He called his rubber ship defiantly - " Heretic».

The bomber chose a route that runs far from sea routes, in a warm, but deserted zone of the ocean. Previously, as a rehearsal, he and his friend spent two weeks in the Mediterranean. For 14 days they made do with what the sea gave them. The first experience of a long journey dependent on the sea was a success. Of course, and it was difficult, very difficult! Swimming participant Jack Palmer said: “Feelings, already specifically negative, were aggravated solar radiation, dehydrating thirst and an oppressive feeling of absolute insecurity from the waves and the sky, in which we dissolved, gradually losing our own selves. Hundreds of miles covered, a few days of a throw to salvation, a monotonous menu of meat, juice, fat of caught fish, did not allow us to act fully. There was only an opportunity to imitate life, to survive essentially on the sharply sharpened blade of the knife of uncertainty ... "

Jack Palmer was an experienced sailor, having previously crossed the Atlantic all alone in a small yacht equipped with everything necessary, but at the last moment he refused to participate in the ocean voyage with the Bombard. He assured that he believed in his friend's idea, but did not want to eat raw fish again, swallow healing but disgusting plankton and drink even more disgusting fish juice, diluting it with sea water.

Speaking of fish juice. As a physician, Bombar knew that water was more important than food. Previously, he examined dozens of fish species that he could get for lunch in the ocean, and proved that fresh water makes up from 50 to 80% of the weight of the fish, and the body of marine fish contains significantly less salt than the meat of mammals. Bombar also made sure that every 800 grams of sea water contains approximately the same amount of salts (not counting table salt) as there is in a liter of various mineral waters. During his journey, Bombar became convinced that it was extremely important to prevent dehydration of the body in the early days, and then a decrease in water rations in the future would not be detrimental to the body.

Bombard had many friends, but there were also skeptics, ill-wishers, and people who were simply hostile to him. Not everyone understood the humanity of his idea. Newspapermen were looking for a sensation, and since there was none, they invented it. But people who are well acquainted with the history of navigation and shipwrecks warmly supported the idea of ​​Bombard. Moreover, they were confident in the success of the experiment.

August 14, 1952 single Bombara expedition started from Monte Carlo. For insurance, in case of a threat of imminent death, he nevertheless took an emergency supply - a small set of high-calorie canned food. There was also a hermetically sealed shortwave radio set aboard the Heretic. In fact, it broke down pretty soon. Bombard's last radio message was his firm promise: "I will certainly prove that life always wins!"

The sea element constantly threw Bombard tests, one more serious than the other. A heavy wind tore the sail, making it difficult to keep the course. Frequent rains did not leave a dry thread and soaked to the bone. And the boat was chased by impudent sharks. They also prevented fishing and plankton sifting. The navigator's body was covered with non-healing ulcers, his fingers could hardly be bent, from constant nervous tension and lack of sleep dizzy.

The water made me sad, sometimes it looked like a seething cauldron, and sometimes it created the illusion of immobility. Alain stubbornly drove away despair. The one who called himself a heretic still felt that this was a great sin, and the doctor knew that the feeling of despair was harmful to health, in his own conditions it was simply life-threatening. And the movement towards the goal continued - slow, winding, but - movement.

65 days Alain Bombard sailed across the ocean. In the early days, he refuted the assurances of connoisseurs that there were no fish in the ocean. Yes, many authoritative travelers who have plied the ocean many times have said so. This delusion was due to the fact that it is difficult to see life in the ocean from large ships. But Bombar then crossed the ocean in a boat, from the side of which to the surface of the water - some centimeters. And the doctor was convinced from his own experience that the ocean is often deserted for many weeks of travel, but there are always creatures in it that can be useful to humans.

“When my strength was exhausted and defeatist moods crept into my soul,” recalls Bombard, “I was taken aboard by the team of the British vessel "Arakoka". From the navigator, tormented by despair, I learned that I was 850 miles east of what I thought. What to do? Fix the bug, that's all. The captain began to dissuade, convincing that life - priceless gift. I replied that I was doing my job to save other lives. "Heretic" again took the Atlantic. Again loneliness, harsh sun during the day, dank cold at night, again fish and plankton, giving strength in doses, now only enough to somehow cope with the sail of a clumsy rubber boat.

The bomber felt happy as never before, and drew his pencil into the damp, moldy logbook prophetic words: "You, my brother in distress, if you believe and hope, you will see that your wealth will begin to increase day by day, like on the island of Robinson Crusoe, and you will have no reason not to believe in salvation."

When the traveler finally saw the shore, it was Barbados island. And again a test - for the soul and will. The bombard was met by hungry fishermen, who were not at all surprised by the appearance of a half-dead man in a rubber boat, and began to beg Alain to give them emergency food supplies. What a test for a doctor! But Bombar, overcoming the natural impulse of the soul, resisted. He later recalled: “It was fortunate that they did not eat the emergency supply. And then how would I prove that in 65 days of swimming I did not touch it ?!

Dr. Alain Bombard proved that a person can do a lot if he really wants to and does not lose willpower, that he is able to survive in the most difficult conditions. Describing this unprecedented experiment on himself in the sensational book "Overboard of his own free will", which sold millions of copies, Alain Bombard saved tens of thousands of lives of those people who were alone with the hostile elements and were not afraid.

Returning from swimming, Alain Bombard organized in San Malo (France) marine research laboratory. Now he firmly knew that it was vital to study them. These studies are extremely important because they are aimed at developing optimal modes survival in extreme conditions. Practical results announced themselves very soon. Those who followed the recommendations of Bombar and the staff of his research center survived even where it would seem impossible to survive.

Died great traveler Alain Bombard in his old age (80) in the southern French city of Toulon on July 19, 2005.

, France

Alain Bombard(fr. Alain Bombard; October 27, Paris - July 19, Toulon) - French doctor, biologist, traveler and politician. In 1952 - as scientific experience and campaigns to promote the methods of survival he developed for shipwrecked on the high seas - single-handedly crossed the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Islands to the island of Barbados, breaking 2375 nautical miles (4400 kilometers) in 65 days (from October 19 to December 22). On the way, he fed on caught fish and plankton. At the time of the end of the experiment, he significantly undermined his health. The bomber lost 25 kg, the level of erythrocytes and hemoglobin bordered on fatal, he had a serious visual impairment, his toenails fell out, his entire skin was covered with a rash and small pimples. In general, his body was dehydrated and extremely exhausted, but he reached the shore.

Travel

Alain Bombard is the first person in the world to sail across the Atlantic Ocean in an inflatable rubber boat, modeled on the lifeboats of his time, equipped with only a standard set for shipwrecked and an emergency supply of food, the safety of which was officially certified at the end of the experiment.

Alain Bombard and Jack Palmer

“Victims of legendary shipwrecks who died prematurely, I know it wasn’t the sea that killed you, it wasn’t hunger that killed you, it wasn’t thirst that killed you! Swinging on the waves to the plaintive cries of seagulls, you died of fear., he said in the early 1950s. He believed that a person is quite capable of enduring a solitary transoceanic voyage without food, and decided to prove it personally.

Bombard already had sailing experience - from Monaco to about. Menorca (May 25 - June 11), from Tangier to Casablanca (August 13 - 20), and from Casablanca to Las Palmas (August 24 - September 3).

Initially, Alain planned to cross the Atlantic with yachtsman Jack Palmer (Herbert Muir-Palmer, an Englishman, a citizen of Panama) - a friend and fellow Monaco sailor, but as a result he sailed alone - Palmer did not appear at the appointed time of the solemn sailing. On the morning of October 19, 1952, Alain, having seen his newborn daughter, began his solo swimming across the Atlantic, sailed on an inflatable boat 4.5 meters long, called "Heretic". In his book, Bombar writes that the reason for choosing this name for the boat was that so many people regarded as "heretical" his statements "that a person can live on seafood alone and drink salt water", and also that it is possible to achieve a certain point on an "uncontrolled" boat.

Quote from Bombar's book:

I spent all of Friday, August 15, studying these wisdoms. There were few oncoming ships. Fortunately, Mr. Climens' fishing tackle was excellent, and I caught several large castagnols, or, as they are also called, "brama rai". I now have water and food. And in abundance. Too bad Jack isn't with me. He lost his courage just when the most crucial moment came. 'Cause now I'm a real castaway! Well, from now on, I will measure my blood pressure and count the beats of my pulse every day. Jack didn't come because he didn't have the courage.

During the voyage, Alain Bombard survived by fishing, using fish as food and as a source of fresh water. With a previously designed and personally designed hand press, he squeezed juice from fish - fresh water. In small quantities, he also drank sea water, which proved to the world that in small doses salt water You can still drink the ocean, alternating it with fresh water. During the 65 days of the transition, Alain Bombard lost more than 25 kilograms of his own weight due to dehydration.

After the journey

In the second half of the 1950s. The bomber participated in the development of one of the designs of an inflatable life raft, which was supposed to equip all French ships. On October 3, 1958, tests of this raft in heavy meteorological conditions in wide and deep river Ethel near the city of the same name (department of Morbihan) ended tragically: nine people died - four test participants and five sailors of the rescue ship. As a result, Bombard survived prolonged depression up to failed attempt suicide.

Then, however, the entrepreneur and philanthropist Paul Ricard invited Bombard to work at his private oceanographic institute on Cote d'Azur, on the island of Ambier near the town of Sis-Fours-les-Plages. In 1967-1985. Bombar headed the marine biology laboratory at this institute.

Since 1975, Bombar has acted as an adviser on environment in the Socialist Party of France. In 1979-1985. Bombard was a deputy for the canton of Cis-Fours-les-Plages on the general council of the department of Var. In 1981, for a month (from May 22 to June 23), Bombard served as secretary of state in the French Ministry of the Environment, in the first government

Overboard at will

This book is dedicated

Three men:

Dr. Furnestan

Admiral Sol

Captain Carter

and three women:

my wife

my mother's

Casablanca

The birth of an idea

Spring 1951. Early morning. I sleep peacefully in my room at the hospital in Boulogne. Suddenly the phone rings:

Duty intern?

Yes. What happened?

Shipwreck at the Carnot Mole!

Now I'm going.

Still not suspecting the whole tragedy of the catastrophe, I, cursing, pull on my clothes and hurriedly go down to the emergency room. There is no one here yet. The porter tells me that the trawler "Notre-Dame de Peyrag" from the small port of Ekiem got lost in the fog and ran into the end of the Carnot mole.

It's quite cold outside, but the sea is quite calm and so I don't feel much anxiety. Mole Karnot is one of the last structures of the port. During strong wind it is very dangerous, but when the sea is calm, it is not difficult to climb it, since on its outer side, facing the sea, stairs are arranged every twenty meters.

A car signal is heard: it's a car rescue service. The double door swings open and, quite proud of my role, I step forward ... I will never forget this spectacle! Forty-three people, stacked on top of each other like torn puppets, lay before me, all barefoot and all wearing life belts. Our efforts have come to nothing: we have not succeeded in bringing any of them back to life. An insignificant miscalculation, and as a result - forty-three corpses and seventy-eight orphans.

It seems to me that it was then that I fully realized the full tragedy of the wreck at sea and that it was this incident that gave rise to the idea in me, which later led to the expedition on the Heretic ["L" Heretique "].

Shipwreck! For me, this word has become synonymous with the greatest human suffering, a synonym for despair, hunger and thirst. Boulogne alone loses from one hundred to one hundred and fifty of its citizens every year at sea, and later I learned that on everything the globe in Peaceful time about two hundred thousand people die in the same way every year. Approximately one-fourth of these victims do not go down at the same time as the ship and land in lifeboats, etc. But soon they too die a painful death.

I have long been interested in the question: how long can a person withstand all sorts of hardships, what is the limit of endurance of the human body? And I came to the conclusion that in some cases a person can step over all the norms determined by physiology, and still remain alive.

For a long time I studied materials about prisoners, exiles and other groups of the population living from hand to mouth. But more often than not, such theoretical research ended with me asking myself: “What do I need all this for?” Because with my ignorance or my medical education- this is the same thing - knowledge remained a dead letter for me until I found practical application for it.

But the problem of the shipwrecked was added to a number of such problems. Its peculiarity was that external factors that cause human suffering do not depend, as in the case of prisoners, on the ill will of the people or, as in the case of the famine in India, on a sudden severe drought, when nothing can be changed. Vice versa! A shipwrecked person falls into natural environment, of course, not safe, but at the same time extremely rich in everything that is necessary in order to live or at least survive, get to land or wait for help to approach. After all, in one cubic meter 200 times more sea water nutrients than in a cubic meter of earth!

In short, I thought that although the sea is an eternal threat to the shipwrecked, it is not ruthless, and above all, it is not barren. You just need to conquer your fear of the sea and get yourself food from it. There was nothing insoluble in this problem. This is how I thought about the environment in which the shipwrecked person finds himself.

As for the human body, forced to fight with the sea element and at the same time draw from it vitality, then I came to the conclusion that physiologists for the most part underestimate the importance of the mind and its effect on the body. I have studied the most famous cases when people survived in the most desperate conditions. The influence of the mind on the whole organism is proved by the hunger strikes of Gandhi, the polar expeditions of Scott and Amundsen, and the voyage of Captain Bligh, whom the rebellious crew threw into the open sea on a boat with an eight-day supply of water and food: the thirst for revenge helped him to hold out at sea for more than forty days and survive! Thus, there was a clear misunderstanding here. It was impossible to say: "In such and such physical conditions can survive." It would be more correct to say, using the formulation favored by mathematicians, that "ceteris paribus (and this includes the influence of the mind, by which I mean courage and hope for life), it is quite possible to survive if such and such physical conditions exist."

Starting from this, I returned to the statistics. Fifty thousand people die every year while already in rescue boats. Is there nothing that can be done to save them? And if it is possible, then what?

I started to read legendary stories about the shipwrecked, but, judging by them, all struggle seemed hopeless, and all hope was meaningless.

On July 2, 1816, the frigate Medusa sank onto a sandbank one hundred and eighty kilometers from the African coast. One hundred and forty-nine people - passengers, soldiers and a few officers - were placed on a hastily built raft, which was towed by boats. At mysterious circumstances the towing rope broke and the raft was carried away into the open ocean. There were six barrels of wine and two barrels of fresh water on the raft. The raft was found only twelve days later, but only fifteen people survived on it. Ten of them were near death and died immediately after they were taken on board.

On April 14, 1912, the Titanic, a transatlantic passenger steamer, collided with an iceberg. A few hours later, the Titanic sank. The first ships approached the crash site just three hours after the ship disappeared under water, but in lifeboats there were already many dead and crazy people. It is significant that among those who paid with madness for their panic fear or death for insanity, there was not a single child under the age of ten. These kids were still at a fairly reasonable age.

Alain Bombard went on a solo voyage, which lasted 65 days, from October 19 to December 23, 1952. His background is this. In the spring of 1951, Alain Bombard, a young intern (A.B. was born on October 27, 1924), who had just begun his professional activity in the hospital of the French port of Boulogne, was shocked by the number of dead sailors from the shipwrecked near the shore of the trawler Notre Dame de Peyrag.

The trawler at night, in the fog, ran into the stones of the coastal pier and crashed. 43 sailors were killed. In the morning, a few hours later, their bodies were pulled ashore and, most surprisingly, they were all wearing life jackets! It was this event that prompted the young doctor to take up the problem of saving the lives of people in distress at sea.

Bombard wondered why so many people become victims of shipwrecks? After all, many thousands of people die at sea every year. And as a rule, 90% of them die in the first three days. Why is this happening? After all, in order to die of hunger and thirst, it would take much longer. Bombard concluded, which he later wrote in his book Overboard of His Own Will: “Victims of the legendary shipwrecks who died prematurely, I know: it was not the sea that killed you, it was not hunger that killed you, it was not thirst that killed you! Swinging on the waves to the plaintive cries of seagulls, you died of fear!

Alain Bombard became interested in the problems of survival in extreme conditions during his studies. Having studied many stories of people who survived after shipwrecks, Bombar was convinced that many of them survived, stepping over the medical and physiological norms determined by scientists. Some remained alive on rafts and boats, in the cold and under the scorching sun, in the stormy ocean, with a tiny supply of water and food on the fifth, tenth and even fiftieth day after the disaster. As a doctor who knows the reserves of the human body well, Alain Bombard was sure that many people who were forced to part with the comfort of the ship as a result of the tragedy and escape using any available means died long before their physical strength left them. Despair killed them. And such a death overtook not only random people in the sea - passengers, but also professional sailors accustomed to the sea.

Therefore, Alain Bombard decided to go on a long sea ​​navigation, putting himself in the conditions of a "man overboard", in order to prove the following from his own experience: 1. A person will not drown if he uses an inflatable life raft as a life-saving device. 2. A person will not die of hunger and will not get sick with scurvy if he eats plankton and raw fish. 3. A person will not die of thirst if he drinks the juice squeezed from fish, and within 5-6 days - sea water. In addition, he really wanted to break the tradition that the search for shipwrecked victims stopped after a week or, in extreme cases, after 10 days. Regarding the first two points, I can say that it was after the voyage of Alain Bombara that on all ships, especially small and fishing ones, along with lifeboats and boats, inflatable life rafts of various capacities began to be widely used - PSN-6, PSN-8, PSN-10 , (PSN - inflatable life raft, figure - capacity of a person.) In relation to raw fish - indigenous people extreme north- Chukchi, Nenets, Eskimos, in order not to get sick with scurvy, always ate and eat not only raw fish, but also the meat of marine animals, thus making up for the lack of vitamin C, which, as you know, is found in various vegetables and fruits.

It was not so easy to carry out the planned experiment. The bomber had been preparing for swimming for about a year, both theoretically and psychologically. To begin with, he studied a lot of materials about shipwrecks, their causes, life-saving equipment. different types ships and their equipment. Then he began to conduct experiments on himself, eating what could be available to the shipwrecked. For six months, from October 1951, Bombard spent in the laboratories of the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco, exploring chemical composition sea ​​water, types of plankton, the structure of a variety of fish that can be found in the ocean. These studies have shown that from 50 to 80% of the weight of the fish is water, while fresh, and the flesh of marine fish contains less various salts than the meat of land mammals. It is the juice squeezed out of the body of fish that can satisfy the need for fresh water. Salty sea water, as shown by his experiments, can be drunk in small quantities to prevent dehydration, for five days. Plankton, on the other hand, consisting of the smallest microorganisms and algae, is known to be the only food for the largest marine mammals - whales, which proves its high nutritional value.

There were many friends who ardently supported the idea of ​​​​Bombard and provided all kinds of assistance, but there were also skeptics, ill-wishers, or even simply hostile people. Not everyone understood the humanity of the idea, they even called it heresy, and the author himself - a heretic. Shipbuilders were indignant that the doctor was going to cross the ocean in an inflatable boat, which, as they believed, could not be controlled. The sailors were surprised that an unprofessional sailor wants to make a voyage, a person who is not at all knowledgeable theories navigation. Doctors were horrified when they learned that Alain was going to live on seafood and drink sea water. At first, swimming was conceived not as a single, but as part of three people. But as always happens, practice is very different from theory, the embodiment of the idea from the original idea. When Bombar received a rubber boat designed for swimming, about the size of a car, it became clear that in a long voyage the three of us simply could not accommodate there. The boat was 4.65 meters long and 1.9 meters wide.

It was a tightly inflated rubber sausage, curved in the shape of an elongated horseshoe, the ends of which were connected by a wooden stern. On the flat rubber bottom lay light wooden sleighs. The side floats consisted of 4 compartments, which were inflated and deflated independently of one another. The boat moved with the help of a quadrangular sail with an area of ​​\u200b\u200babout three square meters. Bombard called this "vessel" symbolically - "Heretic"! There was no additional equipment in it - only the badly needed compass, sextant, navigation books, first aid kit and photographic equipment.

In the early morning of May 25, 1952, a speedboat towed the Heretic as far from the port of Fontvieille as possible so that the boat would be caught by the current and not washed ashore. And when the ships escorting the boat left, and Bombard and Palmer were left face to face among the alien elements, fear fell. Alain writes: “He suddenly fell upon us, as if the disappearance of the last ship over the horizon cleared the way for him ... Then we had to experience more than once fear, real fear, and not this momentary anxiety caused by departure. Real fear is the panic of the soul and body, distraught in the fight with the elements, when it seems that the whole universe is inexorably ganging up on you. And overcoming fear is no less difficult task than fighting hunger and thirst. Bombar and Palmer spent two weeks in the Mediterranean. During this time, they did not touch the emergency emergency supply, making do with what the sea gave them. Of course, it was very difficult. But Bombar realized that his first experience was a success, and you can prepare for a long voyage. However, Jack Palmer, by the way, an experienced yachtsman, who had previously made a solo voyage across the Atlantic Ocean on a small yacht, but abundantly equipped with everything necessary, refused to tempt fate any further. Two weeks was enough for him, he was frightened by the thought again long time eat raw fish, swallow nasty, albeit useful, plankton, drink juice squeezed from fish, diluting it with sea water.

Bombard, on the other hand, firmly decided to continue the planned experiment. First, he had to overcome the path from mediterranean sea to Casablanca, along the coast of Africa, then from Casablanca to canary islands. And only then sail across the ocean in the way that everyone went to America for many centuries. sailing ships, including the caravels of Columbus. This route passes away from modern sea routes, so it is difficult to count on a meeting with any vessel. But this was precisely what suited Bombard, so to speak, for the "purity" of the experience. Many tried to dissuade the doctor from continuing the voyage after he safely covered the route from Casablanca to the Canary Islands in 11 days on the Heretic. Moreover, in early September, Bombard's wife Ginette gave birth to a daughter in Paris. But, having flown for a few days from Las Palmas to Paris and seeing his relatives, the doctor continued the final preparations for departure. October 19, 1952, on Sunday, a French yacht brought the Heretic from the port of Puerto de la Luz (this is the port of the capital of the Canary Islands, Las Palmas) to the ocean expanse. A passing northeast trade wind carried the boat farther and farther from the Earth. How many incredible difficulties Bombara had to experience!

One of the first nights Bombar got into a severe storm. The boat was completely filled with water, only mighty rubber floats were visible on the surface. It was necessary to bail out water, but it turned out that there was no scoop, and the water had to be bailed out with a hat for two hours. In his diary, he wrote: “Until now, I myself cannot understand how I managed, chilling with horror, to hold out in this way for two hours. Shipwrecked, always be stubborn than the sea, and you will win! After this storm, Bombar believed that his "Heretic" could not roll over, it was like a hydroplane or a platform, as it were, sliding about water surface. A few days later, the navigator suffered another misfortune - the sail burst from a gust of wind. The bomber replaced it with a new, spare one, but after half an hour another flurry tore it off and carried it into the ocean, like a lung kite. I had to urgently repair the old one, and go under it for the remaining 60 days.

Neither fishing rods, nor nets, except for plankton, Bombar did not take on principle, as it should be for a shipwrecked person. He built a harpoon by tying a knife with a curved tip to the end of the oar. With this harpoon, he got the first fish - Dorada Dorado. And already from her bones he made the first fish hooks. Although biologists scared the doctor before sailing that he would not be able to catch anything far from the coast, it turned out that there were a lot of fish in the open ocean. She was not shy, literally accompanied the boat during the entire voyage. There were especially many flying fish, which at night stumbled upon the sail and fell into the boat, and each morning Bombar found from five to fifteen pieces. In addition to fish, Bombar also ate plankton, which he says tastes a bit like krill paste but looks unsightly. Occasionally, birds were caught on the hook, which he also ate raw, throwing out only the skin and fat. During the voyage, for about a week, the doctor drank sea water, and the rest of the time - juice squeezed out of fish. fresh water it was possible to collect in a small amount in the form of condensate on an awning after cool nights. And only in November, after a heavy tropical downpour, it was possible to immediately collect about 15 liters of fresh water.

From constant stay in a humid environment, from salt water and unusual food, acne began to appear on Bombar's body, causing severe pain. The slightest wounds and scratches began to fester, they did not heal for a long time. The nails of the hands completely grew into the meat, pustules also formed under them, which the doctor himself opened without anesthesia. To top it off, the skin on my legs began to shred, and the nails on four fingers fell out. But the blood pressure remained normal all the time. The bomber kept observations of his condition throughout the voyage and wrote them down in his diary. When there was a tropical downpour for several days in a row, and water was everywhere - above and below, everything in the boat was saturated with it, he wrote: “The state of mind is cheerful, but due to constant dampness, physical fatigue". However, the scorching sun and the calm that set in early December were even more painful. It was then that Bombar wrote a will, as he lost confidence that he would get to Earth alive. During the voyage, he lost 25 kilograms, and the level of hemoglobin in the blood dropped to critical. And yet he swam! December 23, 1952 "Heretic" approached the coast of the island of Barbados. He had to spend about three hours to go around the island with east side, where there was the strongest surf because of the reefs, and land on the calmer western coast.

On the shore, a crowd of local fishermen and children were waiting for him, who immediately rushed not only to examine, but also to take all things out of the boat. The bomber feared most of all that they would not steal his emergency supply of food, which he had to leave untouched for examination at the very first police station. The nearest site, as it turned out, was at least three kilometers, so Bombar had to find three witnesses who testified to the integrity of the packaging of this stock, and then distribute it local residents which they were very happy about. Bombar writes that he was later reproached for not immediately sealing up his ship's logbook, his notes, in order to prove their authenticity. Apparently, he says, these people have no idea "how it feels to walk ashore after 65 days spent in complete solitude and almost without movement."

Thus ended this amazing feat in the name of saving the lives of those who are overboard against their will. Sailing on the "Heretic" and publishing the book "Overboard at will" were finest hour Bombara. It was thanks to him that in 1960 the London Conference on the Safety of Navigation decided to equip ships with life rafts. Subsequently, he more than once undertook voyages with the most different purposes, was engaged in the study of seasickness and the bactericidal properties of water, fought the pollution of the Mediterranean Sea. But the main result of Bombara's life (A.B. died on July 19, 2005) is ten thousand people who wrote to him: "If not for your example, we would have died!"