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5 people found alive after 3 months adrift at sea in tiny 20-foot boat

Five people, including two children, have been rescued in the remote Pacific Ocean after surviving for three months adrift in a small boat, according to authorities and international news outlets.

✦ Extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting•From 1 source•1 min read•Updated November 12, 2026, 8:10 PM UTC
Key points
  • Shortly after departure, however, a sudden storm pushed the 20-foot skiff off course, leaving it stranded in open waters.
  • "Our profound condolences to family and friends of those who did not arrive with them." When asked by the AP what happened to the missing four, the Coast Guard said it was continuing to gather and confirm information and would reply as soon as possible.
  • CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIES Alexander Narruhn, governor of Micronesia’s Chuuk state, has started discussions with the Kiribati government to arrange repatriation for the survivors, the AP said.

Thanks be to God for his love and mercy that five of the nine have been found," Narruhn said through an interpreter in a statement cited by the AP.

"There were nine people aboard the boat that went missing.

Additional details
  • "We continue to pray for their four companions." TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ The members of the group have yet to speak publicly about their ordeal and have asked for their privacy to be respected.
  • The ordeal ended when residents of Fanning Island in Kiribati spotted the vessel drifting off their coast and brought the five passengers ashore, according to the ABC and The Times.
  • Their trip was intended to be a routine, one-hour crossing between the Micronesian islands of Murilo and Ruo, according to reports from the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
  • Authorities have not released details on how the group survived the three-month journey or what happened to the four passengers who remain unaccounted for to this day.
  • These five folks were found and are receiving care," the U.S.

How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →

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Fox NewsNovember 12, 2026, 8:10 PM UTC →

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