Lima, Peru, Jun 5, 2007 / 11:44 am
The documentary “Miracle on the Pacocha,” which recounts the miraculous rescue of the crew of the submarine BAP Pacocha that sunk off the coast of Peru and which occurred thanks to the intercession of the Croatian nun Mother Maria of Jesus Crucified Petkovic was recently debuted during a private screening.
On August 26, 1988, the Pacocha submarine collided with the Japanese fishing boat Kiowa Maru. After the captain of the sub died, Lieutenant Roger Cotrina realized that it would be humanly impossible to avoid a tragedy, as the pressure from the water prevented the crew from closing an internal compartment that would have kept them alive.
“I couldn’t breathe and so I began to think as hard as I could about Sister Maria Petkovic (foundress of the Congregation of the Daughters of Mercy). I closed my eyes and I prayed. I repeated the prayer that I had heard, I thought of her and suddenly I saw a brilliant light,” he said. At that moment a supernatural force helped him close the door. A military commission later determined that what Cotrina did was humanly impossible.
Eight crew members died during the incident, but the twenty-two survivors said it was thanks to the intercession of Mother Maria de Jesus that they were alive and that she helped them to avoid a greater disaster. The Croatian nun was beatified on June 6, 2003, by Pope John Paul II, thanks to the miracle that saved the Peruvian sailors. Cotrina and his wife participated in the ceremony.
The private screening of the documentary was attended by survivors of the accident and their families, as well as members of Mother Maria’s congregation, the Vice President of Peru, Luis Giampietri, and top Navy officials.