The Coast Guard has rescued three Cubans who were stranded on an uninhabited island between the Florida Keys and Cuba for 33 days and survived by eating coconuts. A Coast Guard helicopter flew the three, a married couple and another man, to a hospital in Key West where they were reported to be a bit malnourished but otherwise in good shape.
The three Cubans said their boat capsized in rough water and they swam to the island, Anguilla Cay, almost five weeks ago. They built a makeshift hut out of sticks and cloth and said they ate coconuts, conch and small animals.
They were first spotted on Monday by a Coast Guard fixed-wing plane from Miami on routine patrol. They were waving a makeshift flag and they had put a large cross on the ground. The plane returned on a rescue mission and dropped them food, water and a radio.
A Coast Guard helicopter from Clearwater returned the next day, hoisted them to safety and carried them to Key West. “It was incredible. I don’t know how they did it,” Coast Guard Lt. Justin Dougherty told CNN. “”I was amazed they were in as good a shape as they were.” See the video below:
https://coastguardnews.com/coast-guard-rescues-3-stranded-on-anguilla-cay-bahamas/2021/02/10/
