[chris]

The Coast Guard rescued three overdue boaters on Sunday, Oct. 9, about 25 miles offshore from Empire, Louisiana, after their 24-foot vessel sank during a fishing trip.

The three went into the water without communication devices and spent more than 24 hours there. A concerned family member had reported them overdue.

The boaters were seen fending off sharks during the rescue. Two of the three suffered hand injuries from a shark attack, and one life jacket was torn. A Coast Guard Station Venice boatcrew treated two of them for shark bites and hypothermia.

Two boaters were recovered by a Coast Guard Station Venice 45-foot Response Boat-Medium boatcrew, and the third was recovered by a Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans MH-60 Jayhawk aircrew. A Coast Guard Station New Orleans rescue swimmer escorted one rescued boater into University Medical Center New Orleans.