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23 people adrift for days rescued in Gulf of Mexico by Coast Guard, Carnival Fantasy cruise ship

The Coast Guard and the crew of the cruise ship Carnival Fantasy rescued 23 individuals on the high seas, 130 nautical miles off the Yucatan Peninsula, April 14, 2019. A Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew located the disabled vessel and directed the Carnival Fantasy toward their location for rescue.
Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Giles
The Coast Guard and the crew of the cruise ship Carnival Fantasy rescued 23 individuals on the high seas, 130 nautical miles off the Yucatan Peninsula, April 14, 2019. A Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew located the disabled vessel and directed the Carnival Fantasy toward their location for rescue.
The Coast Guard and the crew of the cruise ship Carnival Fantasy rescued 23 individuals on the high seas, 130 nautical miles off the Yucatan Peninsula, April 14, 2019. A Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew located the disabled vessel and directed the Carnival Fantasy toward their location for rescue.
Posted at 8:25 PM, Apr 14, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-14 20:25:56-04

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard said it worked with a cruise ship to rescue 23 people adrift for days in the Gulf of Mexico.

A Coast Guard news statement issued Sunday saying 22 Cubans started traveling on a wooden boat from Cuba to Mexico before losing power and drifting three days. A Cuban-Mexican man took them aboard his sports fishing boat, but then its engines malfunctioned and the group drifted three more days.

The Coast Guard said it was contacted early Sunday by a brother of one of the Cubans. In addition to launching its own effort to find the disabled fishing boat, the Coast Guard alerted the Carnival Fantasy.

The cruise ship took the 23 people aboard within hours, about 130 nautical miles off Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula.

The statement said two of the people rescued had minor medical issues and were treated by medical staff on the cruise ship. It added that the 23 people would be transferred Tuesday to U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Coast Guard Investigative Services in Mobile, Alabama.

Associated Press