44-year-old Lisius Nkandi, who was lost at sea for three days near Cape Cross, says he believes his faith and maritime training gave him the strength to survive the ordeal.

Two weeks ago, Nkandi and his crew were escorting a ship, belonging to the company Majestic Industrial Supply, to west Africa when its engine failed and they found themselves stranded near Cape Cross.

While waiting for a tug that would tow the vessel, Nkandi says it was agreed upon that he disembark the vessel and head for the nearest town.

"I was in touch with the people that were going to tow the boat because I'm no longer needed because the vessel now is going to be towed; it's no longer going to be manoeuvred, piloted by somebody. So they told us they would be arriving there at around 4:00 or 5:00 PM, and then I decided I couldn't be there. Because they are already coming, they are near. It's better for me to go out and go to the nearest town and be in touch with the other guys I left on the ship because we were only three, so I decided to go while the weather was fine."

Nkandi took the rubber dinghy and three pedals as his mode of transport to the shoreline. He used a radio to keep in touch with his crew members on the vessel. 

But on the way, strong winds and bigger waves pushed him back into the open waters.

Nkandi ended up drifting at sea without water or food for three days.

"I sleep, the water is coming, wet, I don't feel anything, but I have a belief that I'm going to end up somewhere; for me, it was just a normal thing that I'm in another environment. I didn't panic or anything. Sometimes when I get tired of rowing, my knees are swollen, so you need to kneel down." 

Nkandi says the weather improved on the third day, and that eventually helped him find his way to the shore. Though even with the shore in sight, the waves kept pushing him back, and the rubber dinghy capsized.

"You have to be brave; it's a situation where you have to accept and you have to understand, and you also have some character in you to say I am who I am, yes. If God refuses for me to go down, do you think the devil will never succeed? So the man up there is the one who made everything possible to get through it."

Nkandi managed to reach the road, and a good Samaritan gave him a ride to Walvis Bay, where he arrived home to his family on Tuesday night.