The Mexican Navy rescued the fishermen after they were lost in the Pacific Ocean for five days
Two fishermen were found alive inside a giant cool box more than 100 miles off Mexico’s coast after being stranded at sea for five days.
The men, aged 53 and 32, survived with no food or water, the Mexican navy said.
Naval authorities began the search for the men on August 14, after their fishing cooperative lost contact with them and sent out a distress call.
The Mexican navy searched a vast area of the Pacific Ocean by sea and air, eventually finding the two men floating in a large fishing cooler about 150 miles off the coast of Chiapas, a southern state in Mexico that borders Guatemala.
Both men were airlifted to safety and received medical attention before being reunited with their families, the Navy said.
Authorities have not identified the men, and it’s not clear how their vessel became disabled.
Video released by the Navy shows a large turquoise box with the two men inside bobbing in dark ocean swells as rescue crews move in. A ship approaches the cooler, and the two men are hoisted to safety.
“We didn’t think we were going to survive these days,” one of the fishermen said in a video released by the Mexican Navy. “The only thing we could do was pray to God and wait for the help of all of you here from the Navy.”
“It was the hardest thing imaginable,” the other fisherman said. “I wouldn’t wish it on anybody – not even my worst enemy.”
The men said they ate or drank “absolutely nothing” for the five days at sea.
The rescue demonstrates the navy’s “commitment to the public to safeguard human life at sea,” it said.
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
