A carpenter from the north Colombian city of Barrancabermeja hopes to draw attention to victims of last year’s rainy season by floating 300 miles down the country’s largest river on a chair.
The 52-year-old Gonzalo Ortiz built a special “aquatic chair” for his epic journey that should take him from his home town to the Caribbean port city of Barranquilla.
Ortiz constructed a system that allows him to power and steer his chair with his hands, as the carpenter has not been able to use his legs for the past 25 years because of arthritis. The aquatic chair cost Ortiz $300 and eight days of work.
“I fear the swirling currents in the river, but I prepared well to finish my journey,” the carpenter told newspaper El Tiempo.
A marine boat carrying a doctor is accompanying Ortiz to make sure the carpenter arrives safe and sound in Barranquilla.