Two rescued from water after fighting off shark in Gulf of Mexico

A Saturday boat journey into the Gulf of Mexico in the vicinity of southeast Louisiana took a dramatic turn when the boat capsized and Nguyen had to defend himself against a shark before the US Coast Guard was able to rescue them after more than a day.

Luan Nguyen and his two companions only intended to fish and unwind.

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“I stuck both of my thumbs and jabbed him in the eyes, and it took off,” the 46-year-old Nguyen told New Orleans news station WWL-TV of his encounter with the shark. “Not a good situation.”

Officials backed up Nguyen's account. Shark attacks are very uncommon—fewer than 75 were recorded as unprovoked globally last year, with a disproportionate number in Florida—but they may be quite hazardous.

The group of friends from Harvey, a New Orleans suburb, set out on their fishing excursion with Son Nguyen and Phong Lee from a marina in Empire, some 60 miles (97 km) south-east of the city, in search of red snapper to prepare.

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The engine started to have issues around 25 miles from the beach. The gang attempted to return to the marina, but the boat was swamped by the turbulent waves.

The vessel eventually sunk, leaving the companions swimming in their bright orange life jackets. When a shark came up and attacked, Luan Nguyen was holding to an ice chest to help him remain afloat.

Dramatic footage and pictures taken from the aircraft showed rescuers lifting two of the guys up to the chopper after retrieving them from the ocean and into a boat.

(with inputs from agencies)