Nearing the end of their search efforts, a rescue crew out of Savannah, Georgia, spotted a diver who had drifted dozens of miles away from the Myrtle Beach shoreline.
The crew aboard an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter saw the 35-year-old man and immediately sent a rescue swimmer down to hoist him into the aircraft, WNCN-TV reported.
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“It was a miracle that our rescue swimmer spotted him while we were on the last leg of our sector search,” said Lt. Jeff Davis, commander of the Coast Guard Air Station Savannah aircraft. “The diver’s yellow surface marker buoy helped us spot him despite the rough seas and strong winds, which limited visibility.”
The U.S. Coast Guard Southeast posted harrowing footage of the miraculous rescue on its Facebook page.
According to a news release from the Coast Guard, the incident was first reported around 1:50 p.m. Friday, when its Miami headquarters was notified via a GPS beacon activated by crews aboard the Rhudy Phillips, a 28-foot boat, that a diver had drifted away from the vessel, which was 75 miles east of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and about 20 miles southeast of Bald Head Island, North Carolina.
The search for the diver took place in nine-foot seas with winds coming from the north at 15 knots.
“Coast Guard District Seven command center watchstanders launched multiple air and surface crews to assist in the search efforts and developed search patterns near the diver’s last known position, based on the prevailing weather conditions,” according to the news release.
In addition to the search team from Savannah, the Coast Guard dispatched an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and a 45-foot boat crew from Oak Island, North Carolina.
Incredibly, after the man was rescued, no medical concerns were reported.
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