STUNNED tourists watched on as a sinking catamaran was rescued by an unsuspected hero – a Disney cruise ship.
The boat had become stranded hundreds of miles off of the coast of Bermuda with four desperate people on board.
Disney Cruise LineThe catamaran was left deserted after taking on too much water in a gasket failure[/caption]
U.S. Coast Guard District 5Rescue footage shows the massive cruise ship coming to the rescue[/caption]
U.S. Coast Guard District 5The rescue ship can be seen quickly approaching the catamaran[/caption]
The 50ft Serenity became stranded 230 miles off of the Bermuda coast, and was unable to get back to shore.
It had suffered a gasket failure in the escape hatch.
According to startling reports, this failure caused the ship to start dangerously filling with water.
Panicked passengers called for help from the Coast Guard in fear of the quickly escalating life-or-death situation.
A massive 1,119ft Disney cruise ship, appropriately called the Disney Treasure, was 80 miles away when it responded to the call for help.
The Disney cruise ship was over 22-times longer than the Serenity.
Thrilling aerial footage shows the huge cruise ship come up next to the comparatively minuscule catamaran.
A rescue boat can be seen deployed from the ship, driving to rescue the helpless catamaran passengers.
The yellow lifejackets of the rescue crew can be seen contrasting against the dense blue of the ocean where the boat was sinking.
A crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City in North Carolina launched a HC-130 to fly over the scene until the rescue was complete,
Disney Treasure Captain Marco Nogara said: “We are pleased that the Disney Treasure was able to provide aid to the boat passengers in peril.
“Our crew members worked together on the rescue, skillfully demonstrating their training and commitment to safety”.
The four passengers were returned to safety by rescuers.
According to a spokesperson for the cruise line, the Disney Treasure had been heading from Eemshaven, Netherlands, to Port Canaveral, Florida, at the time of the incident.
BRITS STRANDED AT SEA
In September, four people were rescued after becoming lost at sea for a horrifying four-day ordeal, including two Brits.
The dehydrated men were found by Spanish authorities some 60 miles off the coast of Tenerife.
They are understood to have made a Mayday call to alert local ships after being stranded in the sea for days.
A Panamanian-flagged ship along with a Spanish Civil Guard vessel is said to have responded by heading to the area they were in.
The four people onboard were then rushed to Tenerife South Airport onboard a chopper.
They were then taken to a hospital.
It is not clear as to why they went into the sea before getting lost.
A month later in October, a stranded sailor was heroically rescued after Hurricane Milton in Florida.
The man was seen in sensational footage clinging to a cool box as he he hoisted hundreds of feet up into the air by a rescue helicopter.
The fisherman- who has not been identified – was saved from certain death when he was rescued from the Gulf of Mexico.
He was left clinging on to a cooler some 30 miles out to sea off Longboat Key before he was found by the helicopter.
Coast Guard officials said the man had survived a “nightmare scenario”.
As the storm worsened – it was too late for him to escape.
The Coast Guard managed to find the man, estimated he had survived winds of up to 90mph and swells of 25ft.
Hurricane Milton is thought to have claimed the lives of at least 16 people.
ReutersThe Disney Treasure was over 22-times bigger than the catamaran it was saving[/caption]
APThe cruise ship is so long rescue footage cannot capture it all in one frame[/caption]
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