MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - A group of fishermen got stranded at sea when their motor suddenly malfunctioned, but they soon found themselves in even more trouble.
The boat began taking on water, and they managed to capture the scary moments on camera.
The incident happened in December of 2019, but the owner of the boat is now speaking out about his experience.
“We’re sinking,” said one of the fishermen on video. “All system failure, electrical failure.”
What started as a fun day on the water turned into a fight to survive.
“As an avid boater, we all know that boats have problems,” said boater David Olade, “but this was something like I’ve never experienced before, and I hope to never experience again.”
Olalde and three friends went spearfishing about 20 miles off the coast of Bimini. They were on a 2-year-old boat that Olalde bought new.
“We were told that this boat is a very seaworthy boat without any issues whatsoever, and it turned out to be the complete opposite,” said Olalde.
Olalde and his crew found that out the hard way when one of the motors failed.
Then, the other motor shut off stranding them at sea. They used a spearfishing shaft to jumpstart it.
“Here we are, we made it from 30 miles offshore to about three miles offshore,” said one fisherman in the video.
They were able to make contact with a rescue vessel, which was on standby in case of an emergency.
“Never in a million years did we think the boat may actually go down,” said boater Mike Waite.
For two hours, the crew tread water.
“Sharks were circling the area ’cause we had food, and all our personal belongings were in the water,” said Waite. “About six feet of the bow of the boat just bobbed, and I was grabbing on to that thing.”
After the terrifying experience the boaters said go to sea with caution.
“The one thing that saved our lives and, I think, was the most important thing is that we had someone at the marina knowing that we were out, knowing that we were going fishing, knowing when we were going, when we were supposed to come back,” said Olalde, “and the moment that we contacted them, shared our location with them, they were on their way to rescue us.”
Olalde said he wants the manufacturer of the vessel to be held responsible.
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