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Three fishermen who were adrift for five days in the Central Pacific were rescued Wednesday by the U.S. Coast Guard 80 miles off Tarawa Atoll.
The men left Tarawa on Oct. 12 in a 17-foot boat on a fishing trip but experienced engine trouble five miles out. Two of them are 20 years old, and the third is 30.
They tried to break off parts of the boat to use as oars to paddle back to shore.
Authorities on Tarawa began a search Friday. The U.S. Embassy in Fiji requested help Monday from the Coast Guard.
At 11:40 a.m. Monday the Coast Guard sent a crew aboard an HC-130 Hercules from Air Station Barbers Point. They traveled 2,100 miles from Hawaii to the search area, then searched a 2,800-square-mile area for the fishermen, spotting the vessel Wednesday.
The men had run out of food the morning they were rescued, the Coast Guard said.