Four fishermen, who said they had been afloat for a month off the coast of the Chiapas located to the south of Mexico, have been finally rescued on Saturday by the Mexican Navy. According to them, their boat went astray after it ran out of petrol and the sea currents took them from Ecuador to Mexico.

The fishermen, two of whom are Columbian while the other two Ecuadorian, set off for their journey in September from a port in north western Ecuador. The Mexican Navy said in a statement that they spotted a small boat with four crew members on it who were waving at them for help. A navy patrol had then set off to rescue the men on the boat.

"The castaways said they launched from the port of Esmeraldas, Ecuador on September 24 and got lost at sea while fishing," the Mexican navy said in a statement.

On Oct. 1, the fishermen reportedly ran out of fuel while they were trying to return to the port and the currents pulled them further north. They rescued from the stranded boat underwent medical check-ups. According to the doctors, the fishermen are dehydrated but, apart from it, no other major health problem has been detected. However, it is still not clear how they survived for so long. The navy also added in its statement that the men are now being taken care of by the immigration authorities in Chiapas.

It is not the first time fishermen got stranded in the sea for weeks before being rescued. A Salvadoran fisherman was rescued in January 2014 from South Pacific region after being adrift for 13 months. Also in 2006, three Mexicans were rescued from the Pacific Ocean after they kept floating in the ocean for nine months.

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