Nineteen tourists were rescued off Colombia’s Pacific coast on Sunday, following a search and rescue operation conducted by the navy.
The tourists vessel, “Lucy Mayerli” was headed to the village of Juanchaco when it shipwrecked 14 nautical miles northeast of Buenaventura.
The operation was performed by the navy’s rapid reaction unit, who with the help of a boat full of passengers from the region, rescued all 19 tourists unharmed.
The passengers were thus taken to the village of Juanchaco, where they were met by a health post for observation. All 19 were reported to be unscathed and were transported to Buenaventura by a unit of the navy.
According to the Colombian navy website, the vessel would have likely sunk due to the challenging weather conditions over the last 24 hours.
In 2013 alone. the navy have rescued 186 passengers from 21 vessels in the pacific.
Location of the rescue operation
Sources
- Rescatados 19 turistas que naufragaron en aguas del Pacífico Colombiano (Colombian navy website)