US Navy ship rescued 65 people on makeshift bamboo rafts in the waters between the Indonesian Islands of Kalimantan and Sulawesi on June 10.
Image: navy.mil
The shipboard lookouts of USS Rushmore (LSD 47) spotted the people in distress, waving orange and white flags.
Cmdr. Thomas Stephens, the USS Rushmore commanding officer, ordered the launch of a small boat with two search and rescue swimmers to provide assistance.
Image: wiki
The rescuers discovered 65 people tied together on sinking bamboo rafts. The people were sailing on the makeshift rafts without any propulsion. They had finished also their food and water supplies.
The military personnel brought all 65 people on board the Rushmore for medical attention and will coordinate with local officials for their well-being.
Capt. Clint Carroll, Commander, Essex Amphibious Ready Group said:
"This is an example of the Essex Amphibious Ready Group's professional maritime skills and ability to be where it matters, when it matters to offer assistance."
USS Rushmore was passing through the Makassar Strait after a visit in the port of Manado, Indonesia.
The US Navy ship was in the Western Pacific en route to the Arabian Gulf for a routine deployment, as part of the Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ARG).
Deployed with a Marine Expeditionary Unit, the ARG serves as a sea-based crisis response force capable of conducting amphibious missions across the full range of military operations.