US Navy Rescues Castaways From Remote Uninhabited Pacific Island

X Facebook LinkedIn Email Reddit Telegram

Three castaways were rescued from an uninhabited Pacific island after the US Navy spotted their ‘help’ sign made with palm leaves.

3 mariners safe after joint rescue by #USCG @USPacificFleet @US7thFleet @Amver More: https://t.co/g0j8k8f5eu pic.twitter.com/DRcHyBApVQ

— USCG Hawaii Pacific (@USCGHawaiiPac) April 9, 2016

ITV reports:

BYPASS THE CENSORS

You can unsubscribe any time. By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

After a large wave swamped their 9-foot skiff, the trio managed to swim nearly two miles at night to the remote island of Fanadik in Micronesia.

JOIN THE MEDIA REVOLUTION - CLAIM YOUR STAKE IN ALTERNATIVE MEDIA!

Upon arrival, they built the help sign and waited to be rescued. Three days later, they were found.

The coastguard was notified that the three men were missing on Tuesday morning after they failed to turn up for a flight from Chuuk, also in Micronesia. Four ships were subsequently deployed to try to track the lost sailors.

The three were discovered by a US Navy maritime surveillance aircraft on Thursday morning.

The men are all said to be in good spirits with no injuries.

The US Coast Guard for the Hawaiin Pacific region said on Facebook:

The men were located by a Navy P-8A aircrew Thursday in a search designed and coordinated by Coast Guard search and rescue controllers at Sector Guam. Once sighted, the information was relayed back to the family in Chuuk who launched another vessel to the island and mariners were recovered arriving safely to Pulap.

These partnerships are critical to successful search and rescue cases in remote parts of the Pacific. Ingenuity of these men to build their sign and the preparedness of having lifejackets also contributed to their safe rescue.

Micronesia comprises over 600 islands in total. A lack of resources locally sees the US Coast Guard regularly carrying out search and rescue operations in the area.