Diver rescued

last updated 8 January 2015

Tavernier, Fla.

An 80-year-old spearfisherman survived 18 hours in cold, churning seas off Florida this week before being picked up by rescuers. Ignacio Siberio said he was spearfishing alongside his boat at one of his favorite spots, 10 miles off of the Florida Keys, when he realized the boat’s anchor had come loose and it was drifting away. Siberio, a Cuban immigrant, said he swam furiously, but couldn’t catch it. He grabbed a buoy marking a lobster trap, and moved his legs constantly to keep warm as the temperature dipped into the 50s overnight. In the morning, he began swimming toward shore. Rescuers found him four miles from land. Siberio said he knew he could die at any moment, but refused to give up. “When you quit,” he said, “it’s over.”