Clearwater Coast Guard Rescues Fishermen in the Bahamas

Three fishermen were rescued by a Coast Guard aircrew aboard an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Clearwater near Great Inagua, Bahamas, Tuesday.

Coast Guard rescue coordinators received a report of an activated radio beacon at   10 p.m., Monday.

Helicopter crew members were sent to the scene, where they discovered three people aboard a 34-foot pleasure craft 16 nautical miles east of Crooked Islands, Bahamas. 

The vessel was headed to Long Island, Bahamas, from Providenciales, Turks and Caicos when the vessel became disabled in bad weather.  

The vessel was crashing into waves while adrift for 30 hours when the passengers  spotted the Coast Guard and fired a flare.

The air crew hoisted the three fishermen from the vessel and transported them to Providenciales, Bahamas. No injuries were reported.

"It's important to note that this rescue was drastically different then last week's rescue off the coast of Honduras, said Lt. Michael Feltovic, the Jayhawk's pilot during the rescue. "These fishermen had an EPIRB and flares aboard, which allowed us to pinpoint exactly where they were rather than searching for hours."

The boaters reported they ran out of food and water and were preparing to abandon ship.