13-year old survivor of capsized Bodega Bay boat speaks about ordeal
SAN JOSE, Calif. - There were six people aboard when the family boat capsized last weekend in Bodega Bay. 13-year-old Juladi Khammoungkhoune, who goes by Jude, is the only known survivor.
"What was going through my mind is if I was going to make it, see my family ever again," he says.
The family went fishing often. It was something they loved. This time they were kicking off crab season. But the winds picked up, and so did the waves.
"The boat couldn't handle it because the waves were pretty massive. They were really massive," says Jude.
Everyone put on life jackets. Some held onto the boat, as it went nose up.
Jude's dad, Prasong, had him sit inside a giant cooler. Prasong held on to it but eventually slipped beneath the waves.
"I was crying and yelling out for my dad, so I could hear him say something again," Jude says.
For hours, Jude was alone in the ocean.
"I just had to hang on really tightly and let the waves get inside the cooler and push me to the shore. And it was really cold and I was tired, so I just had to sleep on my life jacket and make do, so I could live," he says.
Eventually, he hiked to a road, a campsite, and people who called 911. His family is relieved he made it home. But grieving for the others who didn't, among them, Jude's dad Prasong.
"It's pretty sad without him," he says.
For days, rescue crews searched for the boaters. They have recovered the body of one teenager, a cousin, so far. The family is planning a vigil in Bodega Bay to grieve together.
"We will definitely be there to say our goodbye and just maybe find some closure for us," says Shanice Khammoungkhoune, Prasong's sister.
The vigil will be November 16 at 6 p.m. at West Side Regional Park in Bodega Bay. The family also has a GoFundMe page set up to help Prasong's wife and three young children.
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