CAPE FEAR, NORTH CAROLINA: Four missing divers were found alive after a massive search operation off the coast of North Carolina, according to the US Coast Guard.
The divers had gone missing on Sunday afternoon when they failed to resurface from a dive near Cape Fear, as per a Coast Guard.
Who are Cape Fear divers?
The divers were identified as Ben Wiggins, 64, Luke Lodge, 26, Daniel Williams, 46, and Evan Williams, 16, as per a Coast Guard multimedia press release.
Earlier, the Coast Guard announced that it received a distress call from a leisure boat named Big Bill’s at around 12 pm on Sunday, reporting that four divers had not returned from their dive.
The boat was located about 63 miles east of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, near the border between the two states.
The Coast Guard launched a multi-agency search effort, involving helicopters, planes, boats, and patrol vessels from sectors in Charleston, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina.
The search area covered about 50 miles south of Cape Fear
The search area covered about 50 miles south of Cape Fear, where the water depth ranges from 90 to 120 feet.
The Coast Guard Mid-Atlantic announced on Monday morning that the four divers were rescued about 46 miles southeast of Cape Fear River.
Pictures taken by the US Coast Guard show a touching scene of a man kneeling down and hugging a young boy, and another man holding a crying child and a woman in his arms.
The Coast Guard's statement said that they searched for the divers throughout the night in the sea with winds of 10 knots and waves of two-three feet, as per Daily Mail.
Coast Guard stated in the statement, "Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City HC-130 Hercules aeroplane crew notified Coast Guard Sector North Carolina watchstanders at 12.45 am that they had spotted an SOS-strobe light, located the four missing divers, and launched a life raft."
Coast Guard Station Oak Island 47-foot Motor Lifeboat transferred 'uninjured' divers aboard
The HC-130 coordinated with the US Navy Destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78), which was conducting a training exercise near the divers’ location to assist. The Porter crew arrived on the scene and rescued all four divers safely from the life raft.
A Coast Guard Station Oak Island 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew arrived on location with the Porter and transferred the divers aboard. The boat crew arrived at the station at approximately 6.10 am and reunited the uninjured divers with friends and family.
Timothy List, Commander of Coast Guard North Carolina, expressed crew's feelings
“Any time the Coast Guard launches for a search and rescue case, it is always our hope and goal to be able to reunite those we are searching for with their friends and families,” said Captian Timothy List, commander of Coast Guard Sector North Carolina.
“In this case that is exactly what took place, which is always a great feeling for our rescue crews.”
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, an HC-130 Hercules aircraft, a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat, Coast Guard Cutter Sailfish, and an 87-foot patrol boat were involved in the rescue. Besides Cutter Yellowfin, an 87-foot patrol boat and US Navy Destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78).
