A video captured the moment three fishermen were battling sharks with their bare hands after their boat capsized in the Gulf of Mexico.
The men, Phong Le, Son Nguyen and Luan Nguyen were fighting for their lives when a US Coast Guard helicopter descended to save them 25 miles off the coast of Empire, Louisiana, on Sunday, news station WWL-TV reported.
“Rescued just in time,” the US Coast Guard Heartland District 8 said while sharing the dramatic video of the rescue.
The trio set out from Venice, Louisiana, in their 24-foot boat on Saturday and began experiencing engine trouble about 25 miles offshore.
“The boat started getting too much water, so it just sank.” Luan told WWL-TV.
A family member reported them missing later Saturday, prompting a massive search that spanned 1,250 square miles, slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island, authorities said.
The US Coast Guard found the fishermen floating about 25 miles from Empire, Louisiana.
When rescue teams caught up with them the next day, sharks were surrounding the men.
“The head part was in front of me and the shark out of nowhere bit the vest,” one of the fishermen, Luan, told the media.
“So, I pushed the shark and then I tried to push his nose. That didn’t do anything. So, I stuck out both my thumbs and poked him in the eyes, and he took off.”
When they found the fishermen, two of them were fighting the sharks that were surrounding them.
The Coast Guard pulled the three men out of the water and took two of them to the hospital, where they were treated for deep cuts caused by the sharks.
Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Keefe thanked the public for their assistance in the dramatic rescue.
“If the family member had not notified the Coast Guard, and if these three boaters were not wearing life jackets, this could have been a completely different outcome,” he said in a statement.
“We appreciate the assistance of the boating public, which was instrumental in helping to identify potential areas where these boaters may have been operating before the vessel entered harm,” Keefe added.
Luan said he has no plans to venture out into the ocean again any time soon.
“That is the essence of this. My deep sea fishing career is over,” he told WWL-TV.