A group of Australian surfers are grateful to be back on dry land. They were miraculously rescued after being stranded at sea for three days. Being stuck out in the middle of the ocean is a terrifying fate, and boats and divers that get lost at sea usually don’t live to tell the tale of their adventures.
On August 15, a group of Australian surfers were recovered after being lost for a total of 38 terrifying hours. Steph Weisse, Elliot Foote, Jordan Short, and Will Teagle and a maritime crew took a charter boat off the coast of an Indonesian island called Sumatra. The best mates were out celebrating Elliot’s 30th birthday. The birthday festivities were going smoothly until a brutal storm hit and their boat capsized. Everyone aboard the boat were left to fend for themselves in the Indian Ocean. They were miles away from civilization and swimming to shore was an impossibility.
According to one of the surfers, they realized something was wrong almost right away and began grabbing items that would help them survive in case of an emergency. Elliott Foote grabbed his knife and his surfboard as the waves crashed onto their doomed vessel. He and Will Teagle returned to the sinking boat to take as many surfboards as they possibly could in hopes of using them as flotation devices. They didn’t know it yet, but their quick thinking would be what saves their lives.
The group waded in the ocean without food or water for days as they waited for someone to find them. They floated on top of surfboards while combating the cold water, hot sun, and unthinkable ocean predators lurking below. Their families were hoping for the best, but as each day passed they had to prepare for the worst possible outcome. Rescue teams scoured the ocean in the area that they were supposed to be in. A privately chartered plane stumbled upon the remains of the capsized boat. Eventually, the four friends along with two members of the boat crew – Captain Mohammad Iqbal and resort manager Junardi Akhmad, were found alive after a three day search and rescue mission.
A TikTok video of the rescue shows some of the surfers helplessly floating in the water on surfboards, as one of the rescue team members asks where Elliot Foote is. Thankfully, he was located on a nearby island and brought to safety on the rescue boat. While the families of the lost adventurers were frantic for days, Elliot sent his dad a simple text to let him know he was saved from the sea. “Hey Dad, Elliot here. I am alive, safe now, love you. Chat later,” he casually wrote.
While this story ended well for the group of surfers, one member of the boat crew still remains missing at sea. A search for Fifan Marongo remains underway as everyone hopes for a miracle. “’Now our thoughts are with the Indonesian family and friends of the missing one,” said Elliot Foote. “’He’s still out there. It’s hard to think about. We just hope for the best for him.”
