Two people were rescued by the Coast Guard while fending off sharks after a fishing boat sank in the Gulf of Mexico.

Three lucky fishermen were rescued on Sunday roughly 25 miles south of the small town of Empire, Louisiana. Two of them were set upon by sharks when the Coast Guard arrived.

Family members reported the men missing when they failed to return home from a fishing trip on Saturday.

The Coast Guard initiated a search of an area of 1250 square miles. ‘We searched an area roughly the size of Rhode Island and are thankful to have found these missing boaters,’ said Lt Commander Kevin Keefe, Coast Guard Sector New Orleans Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator.

A Coast Guard crew rescued two of the fishermen while they were fighting off sharks (Pictures: U.S. Coast Guard District 8)

The Coast Guard rescue crew searches in the Gulf of Mexico (Picture: U.S. Coast Guard District 8)

A sentry aircraft managed to spot the boaters in the water offshore.

A Coast Guard vessel managed to pick up two of the stranded fishermen around 7pm on Sunday, and just in the nick of time. The crewmen ‘witnessed two of the boaters fending off sharks, along with injuries to both boater’s hands,’ the Coast Guard stated. ‘The two boaters were pulled from the water by the boatcrew before additional injuries could occur.’

The third fisherman was picked up by helicopter nearby and flown straight to University Medical Center New Orleans.

Rescuers help one of the stranded fishermen onto a boat (Picture: U.S. Coast Guard District 8)

A stranded fishermen walks off onto dry land after his rescue (Picture: U.S. Coast Guard District 8)

Two of the men were hospitalized with wounds from the shark attacks. One of them was also showing signs of hypothermia. All three are now in stable condition.

All three fishermen were wearing life jackets, which the Coast Guard said probably saved their lives. ‘If the family member had not notified the Coast Guard, and if these three boaters were not wearing life jackets, this could’ve been a completely different outcome,’ Keefe said.

The fishermen said their 24-foot boat sank around 10am on Saturday morning – leaving them stranded in the water without any communication equipment for over 24 hours.

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Rescuers witnessed the men fight off sharks with their bare hands.