In an incredible act of bravery, a U.S. Coast Guard Air Station crew was filmed rescuing a man and his dog from their disabled sailboat, which had started taking on water off the Florida coast during Hurricane Helene.

Helene hit Florida’s coast with fury late Thursday night, making landfall near Perry, Florida, as a powerful Category 4 hurricane. The storm brought with it harsh winds of 140 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center, and caused widespread destruction by toppling trees, downing power lines, and leaving millions without electricity.

By early Friday, the mighty hurricane was moving northwards at 30 mph, barreling through Macon, Georgia, and heading toward southeast Atlanta. Hours before, a dramatic video captured the precarious situation of the boater and his dog, both clad in life vests and adrift in the choppy waters near Sanibel Island, just east of Fort Myers Beach.

Watch footage from the rescue:

Photo shows boater and dog rescued 25 miles off Sanibel Island

According to a report by The News-Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, the Coast Guard located the stranded boat approximately 25 miles off the coast of Sanibel Island after receiving an urgent mayday call late Thursday morning.

A photo shared on X shows the dramatic rescue, where Coast Guard members can be seen pulling the boater and his loyal dog from the rising waters near their disabled vessel.

Authorities confirmed that both the boater and his dog were successfully airlifted to safety at Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers.

The storm had its closest encounter with Sanibel Island around 3 p.m. Thursday, as reported by the National Weather Service.

Early on Friday, the News-Press indicated that the Sanibel Causeway was shut down due to significant flooding on the island, making it inaccessible for the time being.