Overview
- The men — Dennis Woods, 70; Clarence Woods, 90; Cris Harding Sr., 42; and Cris Harding Jr., 18 — were found atop their overturned 25-foot catamaran about 26 miles west of Clearwater Pass after roughly 20 hours.
- An Air Station Miami HC-144 aircrew deployed a life raft and a Mk-58 marker and vectored a boat crew that recovered the family and returned them to the Sand Key station shortly after 9 a.m. as part of a multi-agency search.
- All four were taken to Morton Plant Hospital for dehydration and hypothermia treatment; three remained for observation while one was released, relatives and officials said.
- The group departed the Seminole Street Boat Ramp around 9:30 a.m. Monday for a birthday fishing trip, and relatives reported them missing around 8:20–8:30 p.m. when they did not return.
- Police say the boat began taking on water between noon and 1 p.m., the cause remains under investigation, and authorities urged boaters to carry VHF radios, signaling gear and locator beacons due to limited cell coverage offshore.