The Coast Guard rescued four fishermen Wednesday morning after their fishing vessel started taking on water about 40 miles south of Southwest Harbor, according a news release.

At about midnight, the Coast Guard received a broken transmission from a crew member aboard the 71-foot vessel, Lydia & Maya, saying they were taking on water. A distress signal soon followed.

In response, Coast Guard Station Southwest Harbor launched a 47-foot boat crew, and Air Station Cape Cod launched a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew.

Following a rescue beacon, the helicopter crew arrived on scene at about 2 a.m. to find four people in a life raft shooting off flares and using a signal light. A rescue swimmer was deployed, and all four fishermen were airlifted into the helicopter, the release said.

"The weather conditions were not ideal for searching," said Chief Petty Officer Aaron Clendaniel, the command duty officer in Sector Northern New England's command center. "The Lydia & Maya crew did a great job making sure their safety supplies were in good working condition, and that is what allowed us to find them so quickly."

The crew was suffering mild hypothermia. They were taken to Bar Harbor airport to await emergency medical services.

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