US navy rescues castaways stranded on Island in Pacific after seeing HELP written with palm leaves

Three castaways, stranded for a week on a deserted island in the western Pacific Ocean, were rescued after a US Navy aircraft spotted a distress signal spelled out with palm leaves on a sandy beach.

The men, all in their 40s, were found in good health on Tuesday on Pikelot Island, a small, uninhabited islet covered by palm trees located approximately 415 miles (667 km) southeast of Guam, according to a statement from the US Coast Guard on Thursday. The identities and nationalities of the men were not disclosed.

The ordeal began on Easter Sunday when the trio set off on a journey in a 20-foot open skiff equipped with an outboard motor from Polowat atoll, which is about 100 nautical miles east of their rescue location, the Coast Guard reported.

After the experienced mariners failed to return six days later, their niece alerted authorities, prompting a search and rescue operation led by the Coast Guard and Navy. The search area initially covered more than 78,000 square nautical miles.

A day later, a US Navy P-8 Poseidon aircraft spotted the makeshift “HELP” sign crafted from palm leaves, initiating the successful rescue mission, as confirmed by the Coast Guard.

“This act of ingenuity was pivotal in guiding rescue efforts directly to their location,” U.S. Coast Guard Lieutenant Chelsea Garcia said in the statement.

While stranded on the island, which is part of the Federated States of Micronesia, the men had access to food and water. They also recovered their damaged skiff.

A Coast Guard photograph showed two small covered shelters near the “H-E-L-P” sign.

The New York Times reported this was not the first time castaways have been rescued from the island. About four years ago, three missing sailors were found after they wrote “SOS” in the sand.

With inputs from Reuters