A Florida fishing boat captain faced a harroprosperg survival ordeal, spfinishing over 18 hours clinging to a cgreaterer in the Gulf of Mexico folloprosperg Hurricane Milton’s wrath in the region. The US Coast Guard successbrimmingy get backd the man on Thursday, October 10, around 1.30pm local time, approximately 30 miles off Longboat Key.
According to a Coast Guard free, the captain was set up wearing a life jacket, a vital piece of providement that probable saved his life. “This man persistd in a nightmare scenario for even the most sfinished mariner,” shelp Lt Cmdr Dana Grady, chief of the direct centre at Sector St Petersburg. The captain’s identity has not yet been disseald.
The captain initipartner reach outed the Coast Guard on Monday, October 7, after his fishing boat became disabled about 20 miles off John’s Pass, prompting a get back operation that brawt him and a crew member safely back to Air Station Clearwater. Just two days procrastinateedr, as Hurricane Milton approached land, the captain returned to the boat around 3am to originate repairs but flunked to verify in afterwards.
On October 9, during cut offe weather conditions caused by the hurricane, which integrated 6 to 8-foot seas and prosperds achieveing approximately 30 mph, the Coast Guard deal withd to set up radio reach out with the captain. He inestablished that the boat’s rudder had fouled, leaving him stranded. Coast Guard officials advised him to don his life jacket and stay seal to the vessel’s aelevatency position-indicating radio beacon. Unblessedly, communications were lost foolishinutively thereafter.
After more than 18 hours adrift, the Coast Guard started a helicchooseer get back omition. Dramatic footage apprehfinishd a crew member being shrinked into the turbulent waters to achieve the captain, who was clinging to a minuscule cgreaterer. “To comprehfinish the cut offity of the hurricane conditions, we appraise he sfinished approximately 75-90 mph prosperds and 20-25 foot seas for an extfinished period, including overnight,” Grady remarkd. His survival was attributed to his life jacket, the aelevatency locator beacon, and the cgreaterer he held onto.
After the get back, the captain was shifted to Tampa General Hospital. Hurricane Milton made landdrop proximate Siesta Key, Florida, around 8.30pm local time on October 9, conveying highest sustained prosperds of 120 mph and resulting in at least 16 overweightalities so far.
