Blake Spataro, 19, was vacationing on St Simons Island off the coast of Georgia. The Bossier teen was having fun in the sun until his island getaway quickly turned into a nightmare.

Spataro was sitting on the shore of St. Simons Island when a riptide washed him into the sea. Spataro spent the next 10+ hours fighting to survive. The teens says he swam and screamed for help for hours. And when he got tired, he float on his back to conserve energy.

The Coast Guard were searching feverishly by boat and by helicopter for the young man but were unable to locate him. Luckily, the teen drifted close enough to a golf course that he was able to make his way to shore and get help. Workers at the course fed the boy and comforted him until an ambulance arrived on the scene.

Spataro remains hospitalized in Georgia but says its a blessing he survived and is alive.

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