SAFE AND SOUND

Man, 86, Missing for 2 Months Found Drifting in the Ocean

The sailor and his dog were winched to safety in a dramatic rescue.

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The U.S. Coast Guard rescued an 86-year old sailor and his dog off the California coast more than two months after they went missing. The pair left Oregon for American Samoa, 5000 miles away, but no one had heard from him since August 20. The Coast Guard said it received a report that the man was overdue at this destination on October 24, then received an emergency distress signal from his vessel, and set out to find him. A Coast Guard plane located the man’s sailboat around 460 miles off the coast of San Diego with a damaged sail, but bad weather meant they couldn’t immediately rescue them. The next day, the sailor and his dog were winched to safety and flown back to the mainland. The man was taken to the hospital for medical checks, but was uninjured. “When emergency medical personnel were able to evaluate the mariner, he was weak and had difficulty walking, but no major injuries,” the Coast Guard told The California Post.

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