Missing Boat Captain Found Clinging To Cooler In Gulf Of Mexico After Riding Out Hurricane

A fishing boat captain who became separated from his vessel during Hurricane Milton survived by clinging to a floating cooler in the Gulf of Mexico before his eventual rescue, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

The unidentified man was found approximately 30 miles off the coast of Longboat Key, southwest of Tampa, on Thursday afternoon and pulled to safety by a Coast Guard helicopter, authorities said while releasing video of his rescue.

“This man survived in a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced mariner,” Lt. Cmdr. Dana Grady, Sector St. Petersburg’s command center chief, said in a statement .

“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,” Grady said.

The man was taken to Tampa General Hospital for treatment, authorities said. Additional details on his condition as of Friday were not immediately available.

The man’s harrowing ordeal started Monday when his vessel, called Capt. Dave, requested help after becoming disabled approximately 20 miles off John’s Pass near Clearwater, the Coast Guard said.

A helicopter crew retrieved two people from the vessel and brought them back to land “in good condition,” authorities said, adding that “The vessel was left adrift and salvage arrangements were to be made.”

Two days later, the boat’s owner said the captain had gone back out to make repairs to the boat. This came hours before Milton would slam Florida’s western coast that night as a Category 3 storm.

After the captain failed to check in, the Coast Guard said it made radio contact with him, learning that his vessel’s rudder had become disabled while he was trying to take it back to port.

The weather was rapidly deteriorating by this time, with waves already reaching 6 to 8 feet and winds around 30 mph. The captain was told to put on a life jacket and stay with the vessel’s emergency locator beacon. The Coast Guard eventually lost contact with him at approximately 6:45 p.m., authorities said.

Grady credited the man’s use of his life jacket, emergency beacon and cooler for his incredible survival.

As of Friday, more than a dozen deaths have been attributed to Milton in Florida.