MATAGORDA, Texas — U.S. Coast Guard crews rescued two divers reported missing Wednesday near Matagorda, Texas.
During an extensive search involving boats, helicopters and a plane, the crew in the HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft spotted a flashing light in the water and notified the crew aboard a cutter.
They found the divers early Friday and took them to Freeport where they were last reported to be stable, according to the Coast Guard.
The search started Wednesday afternoon when Sector Corpus Christi watchstanders were alerted that two divers were seen surfacing in unfavorable weather conditions about 15 miles offshore from Matagorda. When the weather cleared, there was no sign of them.
The Coast Guard launched the aircraft, two MH-65 Dolphin helicopters and a 45-foot boat to look for the divers. The Coast Guard Cutter Edgar Culbertson was also sent to help with the search.
They covered approximately 1,656 square miles over 36 hours before the divers were found.
"I think that was pretty lucky. We have not been able to interview the survivors yet. Still pretty fresh. Not sure if that was the first time they saw the weather all day Wednesday and Thursday. The weather was bad. The ceiling was low, it was difficult to see smaller objects in a big sea," Torrey Bertheau, with the US Coast Guard, said.
Once the chopper spotted them, they sent the message to the boat nearby and they picked up the couple and took them to a hospital in Freeport to get checked out.
"It's an amazing story. The Coast Guard searched ... we are trained to search for people like they're our family members and never give up. It's a really great story," Bertheau said.
The couple had minor injuries -- cuts and bruises -- and they were fatigued and sunburned, but all things considered were in pretty good condition.