Heinz wants to buy new boat for man who survived at sea for 24 days by eating ketchup

Elvis Francois, 47, had scrawled the word "help" in English on the boat's hull.

Heinz wants to buy a new boat for the sailor who survived nearly a month at sea by eating ketchup and spices. The only problem – they can’t seem to find him. On February 14, the ketchup brand put out a public appeal for information on Elvis Francois.

Francois, 47, says he survived 24 days adrift in the Caribbean on a sailboat by eating ketchup, garlic powder and seasoning cubes. His sailboat was abandoned at sea when the Dominica man was finally rescued by Colombian navy in January, the Associated Press reported.

The sailor had scrawled the word "help" in English on the boat's hull, which officials said was key to his rescue. “I had no food, just a bottle of ketchup that was on the boat, garlic powder and Maggi [soup],” Francois said at the time of his rescue.

Heinz now wants to reach out to Francois and reward him with a new sailboat. “Heinz wants to celebrate his safe return home and help him buy a new boat… but we can’t seem to find him,” the ketchup manufacturer said in an Instagram post, requesting the public’s help in tracking down the brave sailor.

“If you or anyone you know can help us get in contact with Elvis Francois, please drop us a DM,” Heinz said.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Heinz (@heinz)

After his rescue, Francois told Colombian authorities that his ordeal had begun in December. Currents swept his sailboat out to sea while he was making repairs off the island of St Martin in the Netherlands Antilles, he said. He tried calling his friends but lost signal.

For 24 days, he survived on ketchup and seasonings. He collected rainwater to drink as he waited to be rescued.

To make sure his sailboat did not sink, Francois had to regularly remove water from the vessel. Finally, a plane passed by and he signalled with a mirror. He said the navy told him that he was spotted when the plane passed again.

Francois was rescued and received a medical check-up, after which he was handed over to immigration authorities for his return home to Dominica.