After 5 months adrift, 2 women are saved by Navy

Two Honolulu women and their dogs survived powerful storms, shark attacks and bouts of hopelessness while drifting at sea for five months aboard a 50-foot sailboat that broke down during their sail from Hawaii to Tahiti.

“There were times we broke down and cried,” said Jennifer Appel in a telephone call to the media Thursday. “There is a humility in knowing today could be the last day of your life.”

Appel and shipmate Tasha Fuiava were safe, sound and in good spirits aboard the USS Ashland, the U.S. Navy ship that rescued them Wednesday after a Taiwanese fishing vessel discovered the disabled boat 900 miles southeast of Japan.

The Japan-based Ashland, on routine deployment in the region, was summoned to the area and, after determining the boat was unseaworthy, brought the women and the dogs aboard the ship Wednesday afternoon.

“Thank God we were rescued. I had tears in my eyes. It was incredibly emotional,” Appel said. “It was incredibly satisfying that the men and women serving our country would be there to assist us. It was mind-blowing and humbling.”

Appel, a landscape architect originally from Texas, said she had planned the trip aboard her boat, Sea Nymph, for 2-1/2 years, working hard during that time on repairs that would make the vessel seaworthy.

“I had lived in Hawaii for 10 years and traveled around all the islands,” she said. “I wanted to go see the other 20,000 islands in the South Pacific. I had no idea what I got myself into.”

The pair set off from Ala Wai Boat Harbor on May 3 and ran into trouble before the end of the month while sailing into a powerful storm that knocked out the engine, disabled the rigging and destroyed the boat’s communications.

After attempting some repairs, the women said they felt they could still make it to Tahiti. But it was slow going at 4 to 5 knots (4.6 to 5.7 mph) with limited maneuverability.

Two months into the journey and well after its scheduled arrival in Tahiti, the crippled boat started sending out distress signals. Those went on for 98 days with no response.

Appel said the women did see some vessels at a distance, and they shot off at least 10 flares. Still, no one responded.

“It was very depressing and very hopeless,” she remembered. “But it’s the only thing you can do, so you do what you can do.”

The mariners survived with the help of a water purifier and because they packed “every square inch of the boat with food” — enough dried goods like oatmeal, pasta and rice for a year or more, Appel said.

The women said the most harrowing part of the trip was encountering groups of tiger sharks that attempted to attack the boat on at least two occasions.

“The sharks were intelligent, worked in packs and gave forewarning before they would sink you,” Fuiava said.

“They decided to use our vessel to teach their young how to hunt,” Appel added.

Another attack, she said, came when a “20-foot” tiger repeatedly slammed the starboard quarter of the boat.

“It was incredible,” Appel said. “It was lucky our hull was strong enough to withstand the onslaught.”

Also scary was the unpredictable weather. The boat was tossed around by several monster storms, one of which roared with estimated 50 to 70 mph winds and 25- to 30-foot waves, Appel said.

“We are grateful to be alive,” she said.

While there were death-defying moments and periods of desperation, the women said there were also periods when they enjoyed their time at sea. They enjoyed learning about the ocean, its creatures and the weather. They also soaked in the solitude — the absence of traffic, sirens and other noises of civilization.

“We did our best to appreciate the time we had,” Appel said.

They also credited their canine companions: Valentine, a Hungarian hunting dog, and Zeus, a pitbull mix.

“They made the bad times so much better,” Appel said. “Our attitude would not have been as positive without them.”

Fuiava said she met Appel while she was working a temporary job at the boatyard.

“She was the only chick working on a boat,” she recalled. “She had to work at night because she had to put up with men telling her what to do.”

Appel, who’s friends call her Apple, is owner of AppleJacks Housing Hawaii and president of Appel Green Roof. She has designed homes for the homeless.

Appel asked Fuiava whether she wanted to sail to Tahiti. Fuiava jumped at the opportunity.

“Tasha never sailed a day in her life,” Appel said. “She didn’t even know to be scared.”

Once on the USS Ashland, the women were given medical assessments, food and sleeping quarters. They will remain on board until Ashland’s next port of call. The Navy would not say where that would be.

Despite everything that happened, Appel and Fuiava said they were still hoping to recover the boat, make the necessary repairs and sail it home to Honolulu. The boat, they said, was last seen drifting toward the Mariana Islands.

Asked whether she was afraid to return to sea, Appel replied, “You gotta die sometime. You might as well do it doing something you love.”