VENICE – Deputies in Plaquemines Parish rescued three hunters from Garyville after their boats began taking water and sank Sunday.

Deputies Chad LaFrance and Aubrey Looney with the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff’s Office Marine Division rescued the three friends aged 22, 24 and 27 from the Mississippi River near Pilottown.

The hunters told first responders that they were on a weekend duck hunting trip in lower Plaquemines Parish when their two Gator Tail boats began to flood with water.

Deputies said at the time of the rescue mission, waves in the river reached two feet high and wind speeds were nearly 30 mph. 

The Marine Division was able to rescue the stranded boaters using the PPSO’s Safe Boat and return them to land.