5 people found alive after 3 months adrift at sea in tiny 20-foot boat

Five people, including two children, have been found alive after spending three months adrift in the Pacific, ending a major search and bringing relief to their families. Four of the nine people who set out with them remain unaccounted for.

The group left on 30 July for what was expected to be a one-hour crossing between the Micronesian islands of Murilo and Ruo, but a storm pushed their 20-foot boat off course. The US Coast Guard searched more than 25,000 nautical miles across 31 patterns before suspending its active search on 10 August. Residents of Fanning Island in Kiribati found the boat on 1 November; the survivors were suffering from malnutrition and dehydration but have begun to recover, while officials discuss their return home.