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After news of ordeal, sea survivor talks with elated Salvadoran family for first time in years
• GARITA PALMERA, El Salvador (AP) -- The family of a Salvadoran fisherman who says he survived at least 13 months at sea in an open boat had thought he was dead after losing touch with him eight years ago and are calling his astonishing story of survival a miracle.
• While authorities said questions remained about his tale, relatives provided details that might help explain how Jose Salvador Alvarenga could survive floating across 6,500 miles of the Pacific in a small boat. They said he was always unusually strong and resilient and was an experienced sailor.
• "The sea was his thing," Alvarenga's father, Jose Ricardo Orellana, 65, said Tuesday. Orellana, who owns a store and flour mill in the seaside Salvadoran town of Garita Palmera, said his son first went off to work at sea as a stocky 14-year-old.
• Alvarenga's family reacted with joy after two phone calls from their long lost son, who told them he was getting medical treatment and food in the Marshall Islands. Alvarenga, who says he is 37 years old, later got a shave and a haircut.
• He also confessed to his mother he didn't really know where he was.
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Today in History
The Associated Press
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• Today is Wednesday, Feb. 5, the 36th day of 2014. There are 329 days left in the year.
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• Today's Highlight in History:
• On Feb. 5, 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed increasing the number of U.S. Supreme Court justices; the proposal, which failed in Congress, drew accusations that Roosevelt was attempting to "pack" the nation's highest court.
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• On this date:
• In 1783, Sweden recognized the independence of the United States.
• In 1811, George, the Prince of Wales, was named Prince Regent due to the (Continued on page 36)
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