Woman Rescued After 14 Days on Raft; Companion Feared Dead

A woman who spent 14 days in an inflatable life raft in the Atlantic Ocean was rescued Sunday halfway between New York and Bermuda, but her sailing partner was presumed dead.

Janet Culver, 48, of Passaic, N.J., was pulled from the dinghy that she and Nicholas Abbott, 50, had climbed into after their 37-foot sailboat Anaulis sank on July 16, a Coast Guard spokesman said.

Culver told authorities that Abbott, apparently suffering from exhaustion and fatigue, climbed out of the four-person inflatable raft Wednesday without a life jacket.

“He seemed disillusioned, maybe even slightly deranged, according to Ms. Culver,” said Coast Guard Lt. Matthew Wannamaker.

Culver was suffering from exhaustion, exposure and sunburn but otherwise was sleeping and doing well, Wannamaker said.

Culver was rescued by the U.S. research vessel Jeronimo about 450 miles southeast of New York. The Guard had been searching for the pair since July 23 and had alerted vessels in the area to be on the watch for the sailboat.