Heinz tasked the public to help the company find the man who survived on seasoning packets and a bottle of ketchup while lost at sea for 24 days. The company found him and is helping him buy a new boat.
Sis2Sis reported that a Dominican man named Elvis Francois was rescued after being lost in the Caribbean Sea for 24 days. He shared that he ate seasoning packets and ketchup until a passing plane spotted him from the air northwest of Colombia’s Puerto Bolívar.
Amid waiting for help, Francois made a broth, mixing his ketchup, garlic powder, Maggi stock cubes and rainwater collected with a cloth.
After hearing Francois’ story, the ketchup company searched for him. Heinz initially contacted the Dominica government and Colombian Navy but couldn’t locate him. The ketchup retailer decided to look to the public for help, posting about their search on Instagram on Feb. 14.
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“To whoever finds this message, we need your help tracking down an amazing man with an amazing story. You may remember Elvis Francois as the brave sailor who survived on nothing but ketchup and spices while adrift at sea for 24 days.”
The post continued, “Well, Heinz wants to celebrate his safe return home and help him buy a new boat… but we can’t seem to find him. So, we’re setting this message adrift into the sea of the internet because if anyone can help us find him, it’s you. If you or anyone you know can help us get in contact with Elvis Francois, please drop us a DM.”
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Heinz even started a hashtag, #FindTheKetchupBoatGuy.
Two days later, they informed the public that Francois could be located anywhere in Dominica.
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Monday, the company announced that the search was over and that they had found Francois.
“Thank you, internet. We received thousands of likes, shares, and messages of kindness in our search to find Elvis Francois,” the post read. “It was an incredible group effort across six continents that led to the hundreds of articles and leads and our eventual contact with Elvis. With your help, we were able to #FindTheKetchupBoatGuy.”
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