A German adventurer, Manfred Fritz Bajorat (aka: the Ghost Yacht Mummy), was found by Philippine fishermen on February 26th 2016, mummified in his own boat.
His Sun Magic 44 foot long yacht was found around 60 miles off the coast of Surigao del Sur, Philippines.
Bajorat had drifted more than 1,000 nautical miles with him becoming increasingly mummified by warm salty air.
He was listed as a missing person in 2009.
The last known sighting of him was in Mallorca, Spain in 2009, when he met another sailor called Dieter.
The boat was initially spotted on January 31st 2016 by a crew member of a yacht race and reported to the US coast guard due to the mast of the boat being broken.
The organizers of the yacht race relayed the discovery to the US Coast Guard in Guam before instructing the team to carry on racing as they could provide no further assistance.
The boat then drifted for another 25 days across more than 1,200 kilometres of water before Filipino fishermen found the dis-masted and listing white-hulled vessel off the east coast of Mindanao Island, Philippines.
Inside, the body of Bajorat was found mummified.
It was determined that the combination of ocean winds, hot temperatures, and salty air preserved the body.
Autopsy results show that the 59 year old suffered from a heart attack near the radio telephone.
It is still unknown where he had sailed from or heading to.
One document on board showed the boat was given clearance from maritime police in Sao Vicente in 2013, although it was not yet clear if it was issued in Cape Verde or Brazil, which both have ports of the same name.
Bajorat left Germany 20 years ago to sail the world. He was born in Twisteden, Germany.
Before that his love of the water led him to live on a houseboat.
RIP Manfred Bajorat
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/158783775/manfred-fritz-bajorat
