A man caught in a refrigerator dozens of miles off the coast of Florida Bay was rescued Thursday, the U.S. Coast Guard said. Rescuers are releasing footage from the scene.
On Oct. 7, the captain of the fishing vessel Capt. Dave told the Coast Guard that the vessel was disabled and there was another person on board. Rescuers arrived by helicopter and took them to the station, but the vessel was left adrift.
On Oct. 9, the captain returned to the vessel for repairs, but did not enter port. As he later reported, the rudder became entangled in fishing line and failed. The Coast Guard instructed him to put on a life jacket and stay on the vessel with an emergency radio beacon indicating his location before a hurricane that hit Florida later that day. However, the man stopped responding that day. On Thursday, a helicopter crew found him. He was caught in a refrigerator about 30 miles offshore.
Coast Guard Commander Dana Grady said the hurricane was moving at approximately 75 to 90 mph (121 to 145 km/h), with waves estimated to be 25 to 26 feet (7 to 8 m) high. The man survived thanks to a “life jacket, an emergency locator beacon and a cooler.”