The Coast Guard rescued four boaters Saturday after their boat capsized 12 miles west of Johns Pass.

  • Four Clearwater residents were rescued Saturday morning
  • Coast Guard says the boaters were well prepared
  • Rescue took an hour from initial call

According to the Coast Guard, four Clearwater residents -- Joseph Fernandez, 55, Philip Fernandez, 42, Erick Quesada, 40, and Samantha Fernandez, 8 -- were saved.

“This is a testament to the importance of having working radio communications and life jackets aboard your vessel,” said Chief Warrant Officer Robert Swanson, command duty officer at Sector St. Petersburg. “They were prepared for the worst case scenario. Due to their preparation, we were immediately notified of the distress, we pinpointed their location and rescued them in about an hour from the initial call.”

One of the men on board called 9-1-1 when he realized his 29-foot boat had begun taking on water just after 5:18 a.m.

The dispatcher was able to tell the caller to 'don their life jackets,' before communications were lost. A Coast Guard boat crew from St. Petersburg and an aircrew aboard an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Clearwater responded.

The helicopter arrived on scene at 6:20 a.m. and hoisted all four out of danger. They were all wearing their lifejackets.

No injuries or medical concerns to report. The vessel remains capsized and anchored at the scene of distress.