Every couple of weeks, three best friends go out fishing to unwind after a busy work week.
But on Saturday when they went fishing, they started having issues.
"We started taking in water. The pumps, they got clogged," boater Ambiorix Nolasco said.
These men along with their friend were swimming in the ocean for 3 hours looking for help after their boat capsized @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/QjuO1Au220
— Danielle Avitable (@Danielle_NBC4) May 4, 2017
The men said they were about 30 miles offshore when their boat started to fill with water.
"Once the motor cut off and the water was on top of us, we were done," Nolasco said.
After grabbing life vests, Gray Rivera said the three of them jumped into the ocean.
That’s when they said they saw a speck of a boat in the distance.
"That was the closest thing by us, so we all decided let's jump in the water and find floatable things and swim to the boat," Rivera said.
The three of them were tied together, staying afloat by two fuel tanks and a cooler.
"It was kicking, kicking, kicking until we saw we were closer and we started yelling,” Nolasco said.
After about three hours, Rivera said he took off swimming alone to try to catch up to the boat since the other men weren’t in good condition. He said it was the most terrifying part of this.
"What if that boat don't see me at all and they leave, take off, I’m going to be myself. There was no way I could go back to them, the waves were picking up," Rivera said.
But that’s when he said the captain on the charter boat spotted him and started heading their way.
"We were like 'We're saved,'" Nolasco said, "Without them, we wouldn't be here, I wouldn't be able to see my little girl."
They said the captain of the boat was about to head back to shore in 30 minutes, so they almost missed them.
The friends said this won’t stop them from getting back out on the water and going fishing.
They lost all their belongings when the boat sank and created a GoFundMe account.
Cox Media Group
