(NewsNation) — The family of an Alaskan boy who survived four days at sea wants the world to know what they say kept him alive: prayer.
Fifteen-year-old Parker of Savoonga, Alaska set out with his older brother Sidney Kulowiyi, 35, and their cousin, Barton Rookok, 34, to fish for halibut on September 4, according to Anchorage Daily News. They planned on returning in the early hours of September 6. When they didn't return, search and rescue efforts were launched.
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On Monday, around 10:30am, the Coast Guard spotted Parker around 10:30 a.m. on top of the capsized vessel in the Bering Sea and asked another boat to pick him up.
According to Alaska's News Source, their 18-foot skiff capsized after a fishing line got tangled in the motor. The boy's older brother Sidney reportedly got caught in the line and was pulled under the ship.
"Through the teeth chattering, he had mentioned that his brother was still under the skiff and then he said that in the previous night before our rescue that his cousin had slipped away off the top of the skiff," Adam White, the captain of the ship that rescued Parker, told Alaska's News Source.
"It's unbelievable. It's remarkable and it's cold. The water is 10 degrees Celsius," White added.
"In middle of the night, waves hitting him, he was kneeling and praying," Darren Toolie-Noongwook, Parker's surviving brother, told Alaska's News Source. "That's all he was doing was praying. He believed that he was gonna make it. That's how he got through it."
"He's our baby brother. He's just a baby. But he had faith. That's how he made it through," he added.
"4 days and 3 nights. He lived on prayer with no food and water," Vina Kulowiyi, the boy's mom, said in a Facebook post.
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A GoFundMe set up by a family member describes a disturbing detail in the ordeal.
"My nephew and one of his crew members passed away doing what he loved, out in the Bering Sea. My other nephew was found alive. Our village is mourning the loss of two. My nephew tried to hang onto them as long as he could after they drowned," the post reads.
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