Based on the real testimony of a Colombian sailor, this account—first published anonymously under his own name in 1955, later revealed to be reported by a young Gabriel García Márquez—follows Luis Alejandro Velasco from a routine departure in Mobile, Alabama, into catastrophe when his overloaded destroyer is struck by heavy Caribbean seas.
Under censorship, opposition newspapers hunt for politically harmless stories just to have something to print. But a harmless-looking story, reconstructed minute by minute, can surface facts the authorities wanted hidden. The digging itself turns entertainment into a threat to everyone involved.
Suddenly alone and unsure what to do, the survivor counted everything he had to learn what he could rely on. He also estimated how long he would have to hold out, and when thirst would set in. Listing your resources turns blind panic into a problem you can work on.