February 27, 2023
Heinz Found the Stranded Seaman Who Survived 24 Days Eating Ketchup — Now He Gets a Bigger Boat
It’s not every day that ketchup is glorified, but in one peculiar case, the condiment is responsible for keeping a man lost at sea alive.
According to Insider, a man who was stranded for almost a month at sea stated he kept himself nourished by eating Heinz ketchup. The man, Elvis Francois was lost at sea for a total of 24 days. After trying to repair his boat in December, according to The Associated Press, currents took over his sailboat off the island of St. Martin in the Netherlands Antilles, where he resides.
The 47-year-old was rescued by the Colombian navy. He told them that he survived the 24 days in the Caribbean by eating ketchup, garlic powder, and seasoning cubes. The boat was discovered from the air 120 nautical miles northwest of the La Guajira peninsula. He was rescued after writing the word “help” on the hull of his boat. Francois was then brought to the port city of Cartagena by a passing container ship.
After hearing about his adventures, Heinz took to their Instagram account in an attempt to find Francois to offer him a new boat, writing:
“To whoever finds this message,
We need your help tracking down an amazing man with an amazing story.
You may remember Elvis Francois as the brave sailor who survived on nothing but ketchup and spices while adrift at sea for 24 days.
Well, Heinz wants to celebrate his safe return home and help him buy a new boat… but we can’t seem to find him.
Sincerely,
Heinz
View this post on Instagram
Francois told Insider over the weekend that he was told by multiple people about Heinz’s attempt to locate him to gift him with a new boat. He could not contact them because he didn’t have a phone. After Insider got in touch with him, he stated, “I spoke to Heinz yesterday and they said they’ll try to find a way to organize getting a boat for me.”
Emo News, which is a media outlet in Dominica was able to locate Francois.
“I knew Elvis lived in the community near me and I took a drive to go and look for him – and found him,” Emerline Anselm, the CEO of Emo News said.
After Anselm interviewed Francois on Facebook Live last week, Heinz responded on the page, “Incredible. We’ve hopped into your DMs – let’s get Elvis his boat!”
He was also given a free mobile phone from a local telecommunications company, Flow, because he did not have one.