A 37-year-old man attempting a bizarre sea crossing between islands on nothing more than a wooden pallet was rescued off the southern coast of Tenerife this week.
Guardia Civil officers were dispatched after the Maritime Rescue received reports of a lone figure drifting in open water near Las Galletas, a coastal area in Arona.
The Rio Guadiato patrol vessel was sent to locate the individual, who was eventually spotted clinging to the floating pallet.
Using an auxiliary vessel, officers brought the man on board and escorted him to safety.
He told authorities he had been trying to reach Gran Canaria, despite having no equipment or seaworthy vessel for the treacherous journey.
Though found conscious and in a relatively stable condition, he was showing signs of hypothermia.
A waiting ambulance transferred him from the Las Galletas pier for further medical evaluation.
Authorities have not confirmed how long the man had been drifting or where he initially entered the water.
