Dramatic video

Hurricane victims in the sea: Fighting death with a cooler!

During Hurricane Milton, a man was on a fishing boat in the Gulf of Mexico. He fell off the boat and clung to a cooler. The Coast Guard rescued the man around 50 kilometers off the coast of Florida.(Bild: AFP)

Hurricane "Milton" roared over the US state of Florida with enormous force. This was also felt by a man who was out on the open sea on his fishing boat ...

The man on a fishing boat in the Gulf of Mexico that became unmaneuverable off Madeira Beach (Florida) on Wednesday - just a few hours before Hurricane Milton hit the coast.

Rescue divers in action
According to the Coast Guard, they were still able to make contact with him before the radio failed at around 6.45 pm. It was only on Thursday, after hours of searching, that the man was discovered by a Coast Guard helicopter almost 50 kilometers off Longboat Key. The man was clinging to a cooler, which saved his life.

During Hurricane Milton, a man was on a fishing boat in the Gulf of Mexico. He fell off the boat and clung to a cooler. The Coast Guard rescued the man around 50 kilometers off the coast of Florida.(Bild: AFP or licensors)

(Bild: AFP)

A rescue diver was roped off
Despite the extreme conditions caused by the hurricane, he survived the ordeal in the open sea. A rescue diver was roped down and brought the man safely on board.

"He experienced a nightmare scenario"
Dana Grady from the Coast Guard told CNN: "This man survived a nightmare scenario." The fisherman survived wind speeds of up to 145 km/h and incredibly high waves of up to 7.6 meters. The storm victim is currently recovering in hospital in Tampa from the stress and shock of this traumatic experience.

Hurricane Milton caused considerable damage in Florida and claimed several lives. The fisherman's dramatic rescue is one of the few positive stories amidst the devastating destruction left behind by the storm.