A rescue operation was launched after a sailing boat sank approximately 300 miles off the coast of North Carolina, leaving five people stranded in a life raft. The US Coast Guard received a distress call from the crew of the vessel, named Magic Bus, on Thursday, reporting that the boat was taking on water and they had to abandon ship.
The Coast Guard deployed a helicopter and a cutter to locate and retrieve the group. The HC-130 Hercules aircraft crew located the life raft with all five people aboard, confirming they were stable and in good condition. Due to the long distance from shore, the Coast Guard coordinated with the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush to provide fueling support for the MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew en route to the rescue.
The helicopter crew successfully recovered all five individuals from the life raft and transported them back to Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City. Footage captured during the rescue shows the boat sinking beneath the waves as the orange life raft is approached by the helicopter.
All five survivors were reported to be in good health after the operation. The incident comes after a separate rescue last month, when 55 people were left floating in the ocean after a catamaran sank off the Dominican Republic.
