A father and his son were stranded in the middle of the Everglades in Florida after running out of gas and getting stuck in the mud with their all-terrain vehicle.
Soaked, without drinking water and unable to move forward, they lit a fire and called for help at 911.
The rescue operation, captured on video, has gone viral due to the emotional weight of the moment and the speed of the response.
"Sir, we are stranded in the Everglades. My vehicle ran out of gas, we got stuck in a muddy area, so now we are here far away and almost out of water, with my son," one of the men is heard saying in the 911 call, according to a video posted on social media by the Collier County Sheriff's Office.
The swamp, with its thick mud and extreme conditions, swallowed even his shoes.
Barefoot, wet, and fearing that no one would be able to find them, they did their best to stay calm while they lit a fire to keep warm.
It was thanks to that flame that the rescuers managed to locate them.
The rescue operation
The Collier County Sheriff's Office Aviation Unit was able to locate them by combining the GPS coordinates obtained from the emergency call with the visible fire seen from the air.
The operation was activated swiftly and involved the collaboration of the North Collier Fire and Rescue Department.
"This is another example of the great CCSO training put into practice and the success that comes from fiscal partnerships", emphasized the Sheriff's Office in its official Facebook post, accompanied by a video that has circulated widely on social media.
The images capture the moment when both are lifted by helicopter.
One of the most emotional moments occurs when, safe at last, one of the men visibly makes the sign of the cross, deeply moved, and then seems to personally thank the rescuer who helped him board.
"His shoes were swallowed in thick muck," the authorities reported.
Both were "soaked," which explains why they lit a campfire to survive the night.
Fortunately, neither of the two individuals involved was injured. The fire was extinguished by the men themselves once they were rescued.
The Big Cypress National Preserve, which spans over 295,000 acres in southern Florida, is an environment as majestic as it is unforgiving.
Although it is regarded as a popular destination for nature and off-road adventure enthusiasts, it is not uncommon for hikers to underestimate its challenges.
In this case, the swift response of the authorities and the specialized training of the rescue units were key in preventing a potential tragedy.
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