The Warning Sign
Edmond, Oklahoma couple Nathan and Kim Mater were enjoying their time away with a scuba diving group off the coast of Texas. All seemed fine until a swell from stormy weather caused the couple to lose the rest of their group.
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“There was a storm moving in, and the divers had all surfaced and were going to prepare to get back on the boat,” Nathan’s uncle, Charles Owen, told KFOR.
The Waters Overpower the Divers
The swell had gotten so rough that the 16 divers that made it to the boat encountered some troubles aboard. Owen notes that the swell came in and engulfed all of the people on the boat.
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One diver was knocked off the guideline, which is often used for navigation or returning to safety while diving, and into the rough waters below.
Stranded in the Gulf of Mexico
As the diver struggled to surface, Nathan dove into the water to try and help. While the woman made it back to the line, Nathan and Kim did not. In the chaos of the situation, Kim and Nathan were swept away from the rest of the group and the boat.
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“I was swimming with everything. I had to get her back to the line, and we got her to the line and I, I just was within arm’s reach. I just couldn’t get it,” Nathan recalled to ABC News New York.
Swimming to Stay Alive
Once the couple realized that there was no chance of returning to the boat, the couple swam and traded water to stay alive for an unknown amount of time.
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“Because our body temperatures were dropping, we needed to keep swimming, or we probably would have frozen to death,” Kim told ABC.
A Terrifying Moment
The couple turned their need for survival into a game. They would count to three before they would “kick for a little while.” But another issue was slowly becoming a point of focus for the couple.
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Nathan, who has diabetes, was severely dehydrated and had very high blood glucose levels. He was in danger of slipping into a coma out in the rough waters.
A Glimmer of Hope
After 36 hours and treading water for nearly two days straight, the couple was near exhaustion. But, in their darkest hour, a glimmer of hope was on the horizon.
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The US Coast Guard had deployed a helicopter, other aircraft, and a response boat to search for the stranded couple after the diverse reported them missing.
The Challenge of Finding the Couple
After covering 1,656 square miles and searching for nearly as long as the couple had been stranded in the Gulf of Mexico, the team was about to call off the search when an aircraft spotted a flashing light in the water.
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“There was a lot of cloud coverage so we had very limited visibility and out of the corner of my eye I saw a light flashing through the window at us very frantically,” a member of the Coast Guard crew who spotted the couple in the air tells Inside Edition.
A Beacon on Light From the Water
“This plane happened to be in the air last night making its last run outside the grid and Nathan and Kim had their diving flashlights, and they were doing the SOS to point at the plane’s bottom,” Owen told KFOR.
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“To all the men and women of the Coast Guard. We want to say thank you. Thank you for not giving up on us, especially the lieutenant who is in charge,” said Nathan and Kim.
Pulling the Couple to Safety
The plane directed the boat to the couple in the water, who were located nearly 15 miles from Matagorda and pulled them to safety.
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Kim had suffered an infection from her time in the water, and both were suffering from severe dehydration and multiple jellyfish stings. Beyond these issues, the couple was safe.
Each Year, the Sea Claims Many Lives
Each year, authorities report over 3,000 people lost at sea. Smaller vessels face a higher risk of being lost at sea because rough and rogue waves, which can reach heights of over 80 feet, can threaten these ships and their crew members.
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The search and rescue process for those lost at sea can be complex and challenging because it requires international cooperation and coordination to cover a vast majority of the water.
Won’t Stop the Couple From Diving
Although getting lost at sea can be terrifying, Nathan and Kim say their experience won’t stop them from going out on more dives.
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“I really believe those guys were really the hands of God. I don’t know how to explain it,” Nathan says. “They were our absolute saviors when they reached out and grabbed us.”