Sep 7, 2008 11:29 pm US/Eastern
4 Plucked From Florida Bay After Chopper Crash
MARATHON (CBS4) ―
Four men survived 19 hours stuck on a downed helicopter off Marathon this weekend. They were rescued early Sunday morning from the middle of Florida Bay off Marathon after their chopper made a rough landing about 14 miles off the coast.
The Robinson R-44 helicopter, registered to and rented from a Miami company, was reported missing by one of the men's wives on Saturday. The men had left Tamiami airport that afternoon to celebrate a birthday in Marathon. They never made it.
"The helicopter started spinning," chopper pilot Chris Rodriguez told CBS4 News, "and I made a decision to set her down. When I got to 30 feet, I popped the floats. The chopper shifted to the left and partially submerged. We all got out."
The men spent the night on the floats. They say they heard thrashing in the water overnight. They aren't sure if the sound was sharks.
Searchers for the Civil Air Patrol from Tampa found the four men, on top of the submerged helicopter, around 8:30 Sunday morning. The men were waving their shirts to get searchers' attention.
"We saw something that didn't look right, so we flew over there," said Lieutenant Colonel Arnold Glauser. It's lucky they were spotted. The men had no water, food or shelter. At least three planes and another chopper flew over but did not see them.
The Coast Guard was called to the scene. Their crews pulled the passengers from the water. The crash survivors were taken to a hospital in the Keys to be checked, but their injuries were not believed to be serious.
"Luckily, we had no bumps or bruises and came home," said Rodriguez. The FAA is investigating the cause of the accident.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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