Florida men found alive after clinging to capsized boat for 20 hours off Clearwater coast: Police

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Four men who were reported missing Monday night after not returning from a Clearwater fishing trip have been safely located, according to the Clearwater Police Department. 

What we know:

The United States Coast Guard said it found the anglers' capsized boat about 26 miles west of Clearwater Pass Tuesday morning. They brought the four, who are family members, ashore to the Coast Guard station at Sand Key shortly after 9 a.m. They’d been clinging to their boat for 20 hours, Clearwater police say.

According to the Clearwater Police Department, the four men, Dennis Woods, 70, Clarence Woods, 90, Cris Harding Sr., 42 and Cris Harding Jr., 18, left from the Seminole Street Boat Ramp at about 9:30 a.m. Monday.

Their family said Tuesday afternoon three of the four men, who are all from Polk County, will stay overnight at the hospital for observation. Cris Harding Sr. was released Tuesday. Their family says they’re in good spirits, and say they have something to be extra thankful for this Thanksgiving. 

"It's a miracle," Teresa Rucker, Dennis Woods’ sister, said. "I mean, for them to be out there … it's a miracle," she said.

Rucker said her brother is a pastor, and they prayed the entire time they were in the water and Clarence sang.

"Our pastor taught us that whatever comes your way, God's got you in His hands. And I want everyone to know God's got you in His hands and whatever happens. He already knows, and He has already provided a way out," she said.

"They honestly didn't think they were going to make it. And they did a lot of praying and stuff out there," Rucker said.

"My pastor said I could tell y'all that he went out with, now he's a jokester, okay? He said he went with, he's going to laugh at me. He went out with 10 toes and 10 fingers, and he came back with 10 toes and 10 fingers," Rucker said.

According to USCG, an Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew located the boaters aboard their capsized vessel in 2 to 3-foot seas and 5-10 knot winds at 7:15 a.m., Tuesday. The aircrew deployed a life raft and a Mk-58 marine location marker to vector the boat crew to the vessel's location. They also sent the coordinates of the fishermen to a Coast Guard crew who rescued them in a boat.

"We don't usually get to do this, but this is our main part of our job," Petty Officer Second Class Savannah O’Dell, of the U.S. Coast Guard station in Sand Key, said. "We train all the time, but being able to actually do the job is our favorite part."

"I think their first words were thank you to all of us, and obviously just in the moment, we're not really thinking about like what people are saying, We are just trying to get them on the boat. But, it is really cool having people actually say thank you and be grateful," O'Dell said. "This is a great day."

The Coast Guard crew that rescued them says the men were dehydrated, had hypothermia, and the 90-year-old had some cuts.

"The 90-year-old man, he was on the outside. We were worried about him. We're very happy that everyone was still doing okay. We ended up pulling alongside them so that we could just pick them up from the boat. The catamaran was pretty much fully underwater, so the fact that it was still above water was pretty great. So, we just came alongside, picked them up, got them all on the boat, got them warm towels, got the electrolytes, water," O’Dell said.

"I was a little surprised that it was still up. That's a great boat that it stayed up that long. I mean, catamarans are really great boats anyways, but yeah, they are lucky," O’Dell said.

They had been in the water atop their 25-foot green and white catamaran called ‘Money Well Wasted’ for about 20 hours before they were found by the Coast Guard. It began taking on water and overturned between noon and 1 p.m. Monday, according to the Clearwater Police Department. 

Dig deeper:

Dennis Woods said the water filled up one side of the catamaran and the back of the boat went down low and water started coming over the back of it. 

"It was probably less than five minutes before it rolled," he said. "And I didn’t have time to contact the Coast Guard. We were more concerned about getting a life jacket on the 90-year-old and the 18-year-old. The one I was going to wear got hung up and I had to just leave it." 

He said that the night was tough because the waves picked up. Dennis Woods said he spent almost the entire night holding up the 90-year-old man. Dennis Woods said he spent almost the entire night holding up the 90-year-old man.

Dennis Woods added that he thought it would be a matter of time before they were rescued, but knew it would be late before anyone realized they hadn’t come back to shore. 

Emergency medical service personnel were waiting for the four men when they got to the Coast Guard station. Some of the men were seen embracing their loved ones after walking off the USCG boat.

"We turned the corner, and we're kind of hauling in, and we turn the corner. We're like, ‘Oh my gosh. There are so many people and we have such a small station.’ So, seeing that many people in cars is like, ‘oh my gosh,’ but it was definitely really cool and seeing everyone and all the family members up there," O’Dell said.

One of the anglers was seen being wheeled off the USCG boat on a stretcher. 

Police said the boaters estimated the vessel began taking on water and overturned between noon and 1 p.m. Monday. They’re unsure of what caused them to take on water. 

The backstory:

They were celebrating Dennis Woods' birthday. 

"It was a good birthday now that we are back on land," Dennis Woods explained.

Family members told authorities that they usually returned around 4 p.m. and when they weren’t back by 8:30 p.m., relatives called police. 

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Officers said they found the truck and trailer still at the boat ramp, with no sign of the boat or boaters, who were located on Tuesday morning about 26 miles offshore.

Dennis Woods had a flare gun and strobe light, but it went overboard with everything else in the boat when it capsized, his sister said. She said they saw the Coast Guard helicopter looking for them Monday night, but weren’t able to get their attention.

What they're saying:

"Chris Sr. told me to tell y'all he caught a six-foot shark before that happened," Rucker said.

"Through the efforts of multiple Coast Guard crews and partner agencies we were able to safely recover the missing boaters and reunite them with their loved ones," said Ensign Gaige Garrett, Operational Unit Controller at Sector St Petersburg Command Center. "We want to remind anyone going out on the water to have all necessary safety equipment to include Coast Guard approved life jackets, VHF radio, signaling devices and an emergency position locator beacon or personal locator beacon."

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