Crew from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Munro captured a sub in the Pacific last month carrying 16,000 pounds of cocaine in a June 18 seizure that featured a crew member leaping onto the sub to get it to stop. (Video Courtesy U.S. Coast Guard)
“Don’t let go of that bag!” a Coast Guard member yells to one of the stranded people as others pensively sit atop the half-submerged vessel in choppy waters a few miles out from Tampa Bay.
The Coast Guard was alerted to the capsized boat by a tug in the late afternoon on Sunday and soon transferred the seven out of the water and to Port Manatee where they were treated, according to a statement by the service.
Two of the patients were transported to a local hospital for minor injuries, the service said.
The group had been on a recreational trip at the time, according to Coast Guard spokesman Petty Officer 3rd Class Erik Villa.
“Regardless of how a person ends up in the water, wearing a life jacket is the single most important precaution a person can take to increase their chances of survival when situations like this take place,” Capt. Matthew Thompson, commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, said in a statement.
The Coast Guard has made a habit of releasing crazy footage from its at-sea heroics, including a clip last year that showed a member jumping onto a narco sub and banging on the hatch to get the illicit members inside to open up.
BZ, Coasties!
