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The two coconut farmers had just finished tending the trees on their tiny and otherwise unpopulated tiny Pacific island when they were startled by what sounded like shouts.

Intrigued, the husband and wife stepped outside their palm hut and were confronted by the extraordinary sight of a naked white man stumbling across the neighbouring speck of land, clutching a knife and screaming wildly in a foreign language.

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tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Jose Salvador Alvarenga was found naked, stumbling across tiny Pacific island with a knife in his hand Back to video

He was limping and swaying at every step

It was the moment when Jose Salvador Alvarenga, a castaway who had apparently been at sea for more than 14 months, finally regained contact with humankind in one of the most remote spots on the planet.

Amy Libokmeto, 38, and Russell Laikedrik, 49, described that remarkable encounter for the first time in an exclusive interview with The Sunday Telegraph.

Despite his savage appearance and his knife, the figure they were faced by was weak and shaking and the couple immediately realized that he must have washed ashore.