Year 1914 - The Feat of Pilot Pardo

Piloto Luis Pardo Villalón y "La "Yelcho"

In August 1914, a polar expedition under the command of Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail from England to cross the Antarctic continent by sled, from the Weddell Sea to the Bellingshausen Sea.

The voyage was made on the ship "Endurance" which was trapped in the ice shortly before reaching the coast of the frozen continent. The ship was carried adrift, collided with an iceberg and finally sank. The crew led by Shackleton managed to reach Elephant Island, from where the chief set out in search of help, in an open boat, with some companions to the South Georgia Islands.

Naufragos en Isla elefante - Antártica

Twenty-two people were left behind on Elephant Island, with few provisions and clothing. Delay in rescuing them meant death for them. Ernest Shackleton asked for help from the English whalers of South Georgia, where he arrived after sailing for fifteen days on the high seas. A rescue expedition failed because the ice prevented them from reaching the place where the castaways were.

Other foreign expeditions tried the same thing, with negative results, until Shackleton asked for help from the Chilean Navy, which sent the "Yelcho" cutter, with 22 crew members, under the command of pilot Luis A. Pardo Villalón.

The “Yelcho” set out at the end of August 1916, in the middle of winter, heading south, crossing the Drake Sea, full of icebergs. After almost four days of navigation, the ship arrived near the island of Elefantes, which fortunately was clear. The pilot immediately decided to board the bay where the castaways were, whom he rescued in two trips by boat. The last man had been saved and the cutter was starting up its engines when the change of tide began to close the entrance to the bay with icebergs. The Chilean ship managed to get out.

Endurance

His fate would have been different if he had delayed two more minutes. Pardo's feat had worldwide resonance and the sailor received honours and decorations from the British Government. The event constituted an important act of sovereignty by Chile in the Antarctic regions.

Recibimiento a los náufragos y al Piloto Pardo, en Punta Arenas

*** INFORMATION Jorge Baradit talking about Piloto Pardo Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgCAn1KZpUQ&t=1051s