Two American Women and Their Dogs Rescued After Months Drifting at Sea

Two women and their dogs were rescued by the U.S. Navy this week after drifting at sea for nearly five months in a sailboat. The women, Jennifer Appel and Tasha Fuiaba, both from Honolulu, had been trying to sail from Hawaii to Tahiti when their boat’s engine failed in late May. They spent months hoping to reach land and surviving off of oatmeal, pasta, and rice, before a Taiwanese fishing boat found them this week and alerted the U.S. Coast Guard, authorities said Thursday. They were rescued about 900 miles from southeast Japan. “They saved our lives,” Appel said after the rescue, saying she felt “pure relief” after seeing U.S. Navy boats on the horizon. Appel and Fuiaba—and their two dogs—were brought on board the USS Ashland and they are expected to remain on the ship until its next port of call.