'HELP' written in palm fronds lead rescue mission to stranded sailors
Three mariners experienced a real life Gilligan’s Island after they became stranded on a deserted island when their boat capsized in the Pacific Ocean.
It was like a scene form the movies, when the US Navy and Coast Guard came to the rescue the men after spotting the word ‘HELP’ fashioned onto the sand with palm fronds on Thursday.
The men were stranded on Fanadik Island, part of Micronesia, about 4,200 kilometres southwest of Hawaii for three days after a large wave swamped their 5.7 metre skiff boat.
The sailors were forced to swim three kilometres to shore at night, Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Sara Mooer told CNN.
The US Coast Guard was notified the three men were missing Tuesday morning and began coordinating a search with the US Navy.
“Our combined efforts coupled with the willingness of many different resources to come together and help, led to the successful rescue of these three men in a very remote part of the Pacific,” Guard spokesman Lieutenant William White said in a statement.
Navy aircrew spotted the S.O.S. message and the castaways waiving their brightly-coloured life jackets at rescuers on Thursday morning.
The men were found and rescued to safety after an intense search across nearly 300 kilometres of ocean.
Ms Mooer confirmed the latest rescue was one of seven separate search and rescue missions in the area the US Coast Guard had carried out since March 28, which have helped save 15 lives.
News break – April 10
