Two fishermen have been rescued by the Mexican Navy after surviving five days adrift in the Pacific Ocean without food or water by clinging to a cool box off the coast of Chiapas.
Daniel Guerrero Martinez, 53, and Jose Luis Portela Villegas, 32, were brought to safety on August 19 in waters off the municipality of Tonala, after their boat sank during a fishing voyage launched from a small town near the border with Guatemala.
The pair had been missing since August 14, when their last radio contact was recorded aboard their boat, named the Camaronera. When the vessel began to sink in open water, the two men took refuge by climbing into and holding onto an insulated cool box stored on board.
Chiapas is Mexico's southernmost state, bounded by Guatemala to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the south. Maritime operations along the region's expansive coastline are coordinated by the Mexican Navy, which maintains ocean patrol vessels and naval aviation units for search and rescue missions.
Search and rescue operation
After the fishermen failed to return as scheduled, a local fishing cooperative issued a distress call stating that all communication with the vessel had been lost. The cooperative alerted Mexico's Navy, prompting the immediate launch of an extensive search mission.
Naval authorities deployed a coordinated search system utilizing a ship, an interceptor boat, and an aircraft. Rescuers expanded their coverage across the ocean, while additional boats were dispatched along the men's planned route to trace their potential path.
Search crews located the pair approximately 130 nautical miles, or 240.76 kilometres, off the Chiapas coast. A Mexican Navy ocean patrol vessel was dispatched directly to the position to execute the recovery.
Video footage recorded during the operation showed the two fishermen floating in open ocean waters, leaning against the sides of the blue cool box to remain afloat until rescuers pulled them aboard the navy vessel.
Medical care and family reunion
Naval medical personnel conducted an initial health assessment of both men aboard the vessel. A helicopter subsequently airlifted Martinez and Villegas to a hospital, where medical staff treated them for severe dehydration resulting from five days without fresh water or food.
Following their treatment, both men were reunited with their families in Paredon, a coastal fishing village located in the municipality of Tonala along the Chiapas coast.
Judith Torres Vera, the Chiapas Fisheries and Aquaculture Secretary, formally confirmed the return of the two men to their waiting relatives.
"We have just been informed that Daniel and José Luis have appeared," Torres Vera said, adding: "We are very happy that our colleagues have appeared."
Investigation into the sinking
Mexican authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the incident. Initial findings from officials indicate that adverse weather and strong wind conditions caused the Camaronera to drift out into open sea before it sank.
In an official statement, Mexico's Navy confirmed that two fishermen who remained adrift on a cooler for five days were located and rescued by naval personnel more than 240 kilometres from the coast of Chiapas.
The navy added that the coordinated deployment "made it possible to expand the search, locate them, bring them to safety and reunite them with their families."
