The U.S. Coast Guard on Thursday rescued a sailor and his dog stranded in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida as Hurricane Helen hurtled toward land.
A man and his dog were aboard a 36-foot sailboat that “became disabled and began to take on water” Thursday afternoon, according to USCG Clearwater Air Station. he said on Facebook.
Coast Guard crews responded to the boater's distress call and rushed to the man's location, about 40 miles offshore from Sanibel Island near Fort Myers.
The rescue operation was successful and the unidentified sailor and his dog were rescued and brought back to shore.
As a USCG helicopter flew overhead, one of the rescuers took photos of the man and his dog wearing life jackets.
It's unclear where the crew was traveling to and from the ship, but Helen was hovering nearby and a small craft warning and hurricane warning were in effect for the area.
A small craft advisory means winds of 21 to 33 knots or sea depths of 10 feet or more are expected to create hazardous wave conditions for small craft.
Hurricane Helen made landfall as a Category 4 storm Thursday around 11:10 p.m.
The eyewall moved over the Big Bend region and Florida's Panhandle, with maximum sustained winds estimated at 140 mph.
The storm is expected to hit the region with hurricane-force winds, a potentially “unsurvivable” 6-foot storm surge and flooding rain.
At least one person was killed Thursday when a driver crashed into a sign while traveling on Interstate 4 in the Tampa Bay area. According to WTSP.
The fatal accident occurred near mile marker 1 just before 8 p.m.
of Pasco County Sheriff's Office It reported receiving more than 20 water rescue calls as the U.S. 19 corridor in West Pasco began to flood by midnight Friday.
