Three men rescued from Pacific island after spelling out 'help' in palm fronds

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The castaways used Palm fronds to attract attention with a makeshift 'help' sign. Credit: US Coast Guard Hawaii Pacific/Facebook

Three shipwrecked men have been rescued from an uninhabited Pacific island after their makeshift 'help' sign made from Palm fronds was spotted by the US Coast Guard.

After a large wave swamped their 9-foot skiff, the trio managed to swim nearly two miles at night to the remote island of Fanadik in Micronesia.

Upon arrival, they built the help sign and waited to be rescued. Three days later, they were found.

One of the men waves life jackets to attract the attention of US Navy surveillance aircraft. Credit: US Coast Guard Hawaii Pacific/Facebook

The coastguard was notified that the three men were missing on Tuesday morning after they failed to turn up for a flight from Chuuk, also in Micronesia. Four ships were subsequently deployed to try to track the lost sailors.

The three were discovered by a US Navy maritime surveillance aircraft on Thursday morning.

The men are all said to be in good spirits with no injuries.

A small boat recovers the men from the uninhabited island after they were discovered by US Navy surveillance aircraft. Credit: US Coast Guard Hawaii Pacific/Facebook

The US Coast Guard for the Hawaiin Pacific region said on Facebook:

Micronesia comprises over 600 islands in total. A lack of resources locally sees the US Coast Guard regularly carrying out search and rescue operations in the area.

Three men wave life jackets as US Navy surveillance aircraft discovers them. Credit: US Coast Guard Hawaii Pacific/Facebook