Boat captain found clinging to cooler in Gulf of Mexico after riding out Hurricane Milton in ocean

The captain of a boat that was disabled in the Gulf of Mexico during Hurricane Milton was rescued by the Coast Guard clinging to a cooler on Thursday afternoon, according to a statement from the Coast Guard.

"This man survived in a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced mariner," said Lt. Cmdr. Dana Grady, Sector St. Petersburg's command center chief. " To understand the severity of the hurricane conditions , we estimate he experienced approximately 75-90 mph winds, and 20-25 foot seas, for an extended period of time including overnight. He survived because of a life jacket, his emergency position indicating locator beacon, and a cooler."

The fishing vessel that the man was the captain of, but not the owner of, reportedly broke down on Monday about 20 miles off John's Pass, according to the Coast Guard. The boat was left in the water while arrangements were made to retrieve the vessel from the gulf.

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The owner of the boat reported to the Coast Guard, that the captain had gone out at just before dawn on Wednesday to make repairs on the boat and had not been heard from since.

"Watchstanders were able to make radio contact with the captain who reported the rudder was fouled with a line and became disabled during his transit back to port," the statement said.

As Milton approached the area conditions quickly began to deteriorate and speaking over the radio the Coast Guard instructed the captain to put on his life jacket and stay with the boat's locator beacon. The Coast Guard reportedly lost contact with the captain around 6:45 p.m. EST on Wednesday, shortly before Milton made landfall in Florida.

Coast Guard officials were able to rescue the man by helicopter while he reportedly hung on to a cooler for dear life at around 1:30 p.m. EST on Thursday about 30 miles off the coast of Longboat Key, Florida. He was taken to Tampa General Hospital to be treated. The Coast Guard did not disclose if he was suffering from any injuries and his condition is not known at this time.

Milton ripped across the state of Florida on Wednesday night and early Thursday morning with sustained winds of up to 105 mph. At least 16 deaths have been reported from the storm, which made landfall as a Category 3 storm. More than 2.8 million homes and businesses remain without power as of 9 p.m. EST, according to utility tracker Find Energy .