The United States Coast Guard rescued a man on Thursday who was clinging on to a cooler roughly 30 miles off the coast of Florida following Hurricane Milton.
In a Thursday press release, Coast Guard officials said, “Coast Guard Air Station Miami helicopter crew rescued a man, Thursday, approximately 30 miles off Longboat Key following Hurricane Milton.”
After discovering the man “clinging to a cooler” and wearing a life jacket at roughly 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, the Coast Guard said an aircrew transported the man to Tampa General Hospital for additional medical care.
The press release stated, “Monday, the captain of the fishing vessel Capt. Dave reported to Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders, at approximately 12:40 p.m., he and a crew member were disabled approximately 20 miles off John’s Pass.”
In response to the report, an Air Station Clearwater rescue helicopter crew and a Coast Guard Station Sand Key rescue boat were deployed to the scene. The captain and crew member were both rescued by the aircrew and returned to Air Station Clearwater in “good condition.” However, the ship was “left adrift” in anticipation of salvage arrangements.
However, at approximately 12 p.m. on Wednesday, the owner of the ship reported that the captain had gone back to the vessel to make repairs at 3 a.m. and had not checked back in. The Coast Guard said watchstanders were able to contact the captain and that he reported a disabled rudder on the ship as he attempted to navigate back to the port.
Coast Guard officials noted that the weather was “6-8 foot seas, and approximately 30 mph winds” at the time and that the weather was “quickly deteriorating” as Hurricane Milton approached Florida. As a result, the Coast Guard told the captain to put on a life jacket and remain with the ship’s emergency position indicating radio beacon. At roughly 6:45 p.m. on Wednesday, the Coast Guard watchstanders lost communication with the captain until he was rescued on Thursday.
Commenting on the extraordinary circumstances of the man’s survival, Lt. Cmdr. Dana Grady, command center chief for Sector St. Petersburg, said, “This man survived in a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced mariner. To understand the severity of the hurricane conditions, we estimate he experienced approximately 75-90 mph winds, 20-25 foot seas, for an extended period of time to include overnight. He survived because of a life jacket, his emergency position indicating locator beacon, and a cooler.”
A video of Thursday’s Coast Guard rescue was shared on X, formerly Twitter, by USCG Southeast.
