HOUSTON — A Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries boat crew located 2 fishermen who had been missing and performed CPR to revive one of the men Wednesday morning about 11 miles southwest of Rockefeller State Wildlife Refuge and Game Preserve.
The boat crew found the men clinging to the bow of their sunken boat near an oil rig. They were taken back to shore and met EMS, who took them to a local hospital for further treatment.
"I am very happy they were found alive," said Zach Edwards, the Coast Guard search and rescue coordinator in Houston. "It could have been so much worse. It was a good example of a coordinated response between local, state and federal agencies to locate the missing men."
The Coast Guard and Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries crews scoured the Gulf of Mexico off Lake Charles throughout the night with boats, cutters, helicopters and airplanes for the two men that did not return home Tuesday evening.
The men reportedly took their 17-foot aluminum boat fishing more than 20 miles offshore Tuesday morning. The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries contacted the Coast Guard for assistance after a family member notified them that the men did not return as expected.
The Coast Guard recommends that boaters always wear their lifejackets, file a float plan to let someone know where you are going, and make sure you are prepared for what you plan to do. Anyone can file a float plan – and if you’re looking for a fast, easy way to do that, you can download the Coast Guard mobile app for boating safety, which allows you to file a float plan from your cell phone and send it to friends and family.