๐Ÿ“ฐ NEW YORK POST

Fishermen saved by Coast Guard in high-seas drama captured on video

They were the catch of the day.

A pair of frightened fishermen were dumped in the ocean when their boat flipped over in 8-foot swells off the coast of Puerto Rico on Saturday โ€” and only saved in the nick of time.

Dramatic video from the US Coast Guard captured the moment the two soggy mariners โ€” clinging to their sinking boat โ€” were plucked to safety about 5 miles from Desecheo Island off Puerto Ricoโ€™s western shoreline.

The US Coast Guard rescued two men who were left stranded in the ocean when their fishing boat flipped over Saturday. uscg.mil
An MH-60 Jayhawk chopper was dispatched to rescue the pair off Puerto Rico. uscg.mil

The pairโ€™s sinking fishing boat went down just 5 minutes after help arrived, the federal maritime agency said in a press release Sunday.

โ€œOur crews worked together to conduct the rescue safely and efficiently with the best possible outcome,โ€ Coast Guard aircraft commander Lt. David Tirado Tolosa said in a statement.

โ€œEmergencies at sea can happen at any given moment,โ€ Tolosa said. โ€œWe recommend all mariners wear their life jackets and carry a marine grade radio as these men did, in case they encounter an unexpected situation at sea.โ€

The Coast Guard received the distress alert around 4 p.m. about a disabled vessel in the ocean.

The Coast Guard said the fishing boat sank just 5 minutes after its rescue chopper arrived at the scene. uscg.mil

An MH-60 Jayhawk chopper was then dispatched from Air Station Borinquen in Puerto Rico to rush to the scene โ€” arriving just before the boat sank at 5 p.m.

The footage shows a Coast Guard crew member jumping into the water and swimming out to the two men, who were then pulled onto the helicopter one at a time.

The two men were not injured, the Coast Guard said.


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