A man and a woman have been rescued after a terrifying three-day ordeal at sea with nothing more than their paddleboards. 

The couple, both aged in their 40s, were dropped off to North West Island on the Curtis Ferry Services for a camping trip on January 7.

They went paddleboarding later that afternoon but were caught in a rip and dragged 50 nautical miles out to sea in crocodile and shark-infested waters off the Capricorn Coast.

After three days clinging to their boards with no food, water or sunscreen, the pair were rescued by a local fisherman, Lorne Bunassi, and taken to hospital, suffering from shock and exhaustion.

Mr Bunassi told Luke Bradnam on 4BC Summer Breakfast the pair had lost their paddleboards by the time he discovered them in the water.

“They could hardly even tread water,” he said. “They must’ve their boards out in the breakers, out on the bar on the mouth of Yellow Patch,” he said.

“They were that weak and tired, I don’t think they would’ve been able to tread water for long.”

Press PLAY below to hear Lorne Bunassi describe the rescue 

Curtis Ferry Services owner Adam Balkin told Dan Nolan on 4BC Summer Drive the couple were “very fortunate” to have had fine weather while stranded.

Adam Balkin: “They were lucky that there was lots of tide flow there, going up and down the coast, but the northerly winds have pushed them into the coast.”

Dan Nolan: “So it’s that northerly wind that saved the day here. If the wind was blowing out toward the east, they would’ve been pushed further out to sea?”

Adam Balkin: “Yeah, so with a westerly wind, they would’ve been pushed out to Swain Reefs and there would’ve been no hope for getting found out there.”

Press PLAY below to hear just how precarious their situation was

Image: Getty