A British man has died while taking part in a charity row across the Atlantic Ocean.
Michael Holt, 54, was found dead in the cabin of his boat by the crew of a fishing vessel which had sailed to his aid.
Holt, from Porthmadog, north Wales, was more than 700 miles into his rowing challenge when his family lost contact with him.
The father of one set off from Gran Canaria on January 27 and was making his way to Barbados.
The journey of 2,942 miles was expected to take between 50 to 110 days to complete.
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Holt’s family had been putting updates on Facebook throughout his expedition and in a recent post said that he was feeling ill. His family lost contact with him on February 23 and alerted local rescue services.
A fishing vessel travelled directly to Holt’s location after it accepted a task from authorities in Cape Verde, off the west coast of Africa.
Holt, a type 1 diabetic who had been living in the Wirral, began the journey after two years of training. He was taking part in the rowing challenge to raise money for Mind and Liverpool Charity and Voluntary Services.
In a statement on Facebook, his brother David said: “Last night the fishing vessel Noruego accepted a tasking from Cape Verde Joint Rescue Coordination Centre and made directly for Michael’s coordinates. Very sadly, upon arrival, Michael was found dead inside his cabin.
“Of course this was not the ultimate conclusion we were looking for, but I am somewhat comforted knowing he died doing something he absolutely wanted to do with a passion and managed to row in excess of 700 miles in the process.”
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Holt’s death had come as a “huge shock” to his family and friends, the statement added. His brother thanked those on social media who had been following his journey for their “kind words and wishes”.
Holt had faced strong winds, a shark attack and had lost an oar while making his way across the ocean. An update on Facebook on February 15 described how his boat had been attacked by a shark.
“This is extremely … and probably a case that it was hunting a fish under the boat and grabbed the rudder by mistake — but Michael took it all in his stride, and once the sharks had left, he just carried on rowing.”
The Foreign Office said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who has died in Cape Verde and are in contact with the local authorities.”
