A daring escape from Vietnam, and a brilliant career

Anh Nguyen Austen's family fled Vietnam by sea in 1982, on a wooden boat bound for the Philippines. When a once-in-a-century storm struck in South China Sea, they thought all hope was lost. Anh is an academic and community volunteer. She grew up in Vietnam in a Catholic family.

Anh's childhood was idyllic, with a big extended family and a close friendship with her cousin named Joe.

But life for the adults was complicated after the end of the war. In the early 1980s, her parents planned a daring escape.

Under the noses of the regime, they secretly constructed a boat which they hoped would take them to the Philippines.

They intended to bring 40 people with them, but on the day of departure 101 people crowded on board, before the boat sailed into a once-in-a-century storm on the South China Sea.

Years later, Anh found film footage of their rescue, at a moment when almost all hope was lost.

After their rescue, her family made it to a refugee camp in the Philippines, then to America, where Anh grew up to attend some of the world's most prestigious universities before she became an academic herself.

Further information

The rescue of 101 Boat was filmed for Medecins du Monde

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