Three stranded sailors were rescued Tuesday after they had been stranded on an atoll in Micronesia for over a week and spelled "HELP" with palm tree leaves, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
The sailors' palm tree sign helped alert authorities to their location when a U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon aircraft overflew the area, the Coast Guard said in a statement.
"In a remarkable testament to their will to be found, the mariners spelled out 'HELP' on the beach using palm leaves, a crucial factor in their discovery," Lt. Chelsea Garcia, the search and rescue mission coordinator on the day they were located, said in a statement.
"This act of ingenuity was pivotal in guiding rescue efforts directly to their location."
The rescue began on April 6 when the Joint Rescue Sub-Center Guam received a distress call from a woman saying her three uncles had not returned from Pikelot Atoll, a tiny uninhabited island in the Caroline Island chain in the Pacific Ocean, about 415 miles from Guam, the Coast Guard said.
The Coast Guard did not publicly identify the sailors, but described them as men in their 40s with experience navigating the waters. The trio reportedly embarked on their journey from Polowat Atoll on March 31 in a 20-foot skiff with an outboard motor, according to the Coast Guard.
Joint Rescue Sub-Center Guam began an initial search area of 78,000 nautical miles. Navy aircraft spotted the men from their palm tree sign on April 7.
The aircraft deployed survival packages to the sailors until further help could arrive, the Coast Guard said.
On April 8, a U.S. Coast Guard HC-130J Hercules aircraft was able to relocate the sailors and dropped a radio to establish communication, the Coast Guard said.
"The mariners confirmed they were in good health, had access to food and water, and recovered their skiff, which unfortunately sustained damage, rendering it and its outboard engine non-functional," the Coast Guard said.
The USCGC Oliver Henry, which had been at sea in Micronesia and diverted to the search area, reached the sailors on April 9, and returned them and their skiff to Polowat Atoll.
In a statement, Lt. Ray Cerrato, commanding officer the Oliver Henry, hailed his crew's efforts, saying, "I couldn’t be prouder of the work we do.”
The Coast Guard recommended for all vessels to be equipped with an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon to help with safety at sea.
