It started as a day spent on a raft on the Adriatic Sea with her older sister and their two cousins. However,for Gabi Akrap it ended as a near-death experience.

“There were really big waves that day and for some reason we thought it was a good idea to see if we could all fit on the same raft,” Akrap, junior, said.

Akrap said the waves carried them a mile away from the beach where their parents were.

Now, far from the shore, the kids were on their own. Then out of nowhere, a wave came and flipped the raft over.

“I was shot up near the shore, drowning,” Akrap said. “I looked behind me and [my sister] was in the middle of the ocean, and my two cousins were by very sharp rocks trying to pull themselves out of the water because the waves kept coming and pushing them [into the rocks],” Akrap said.

Akrap was able to escape unharmed from the rocks. She used her feet to push off of a nearby rock to get to a safer area.

Although she does not know why, Akrap said she started to laugh at the situation.

Next, a wave came over her and flooded her throat with salt water.

“My younger cousin was on the shore watching us,” Akrap said. “He didn’t try to help. He just kept yelling, ‘Grab my raft, grab my raft!’”

Akrap said at the time the group was scarred from the experience. However, now they find laughter when remembering the event.

“My older cousin who got away from the rocks swam and tried to help my other cousin,” Akrap said. “But she couldn’t [help her] so she left and swam over to me.”

“We were kneeling on the rocky sand, looked at each other and started cracking up. I always remember that because we almost died but we started laughing.”

Click here to learn more about the Adriatic Sea.