A frigate out of San Diego has led a rescue off Ecuador.
The USS RENTZ, part of the US 4th Fleet based in Mayport and running counter transnational organized crime operations as part of Operation Martillo, first spotted the 14 meter fishing vessel 200 nautical miles off the coast of Ecuador. They had been stranded for 10 days after encountering bad weather and running out of fuel.
The 194 sailors aboard the USS RENTZ spent two days on the rescue mission. The Navy tells us five Ecuadorean nationals on board had been subsisting on only bananas for days.
The crew provided ready-to-eat meals and enough diesel fuel to return home.