Former “The Bachelorette” contestants rescued from sinking boat in San Diego

Former contestants on ABC’s “The Bachelorette” were rescued after their boat sank in San Diego on Monday, leaving them stranded in the water for more than three hours.

Aaron Schwartzman, Brayden Bowers and three of their friends saw their boat completely sink about 17 miles offshore while they were fishing.

Charity Lawson’s season 10th and 11th place finishers told KSWB that they were helpless and had nothing but hope until they were discovered.

“It’s like you’re trapped and helpless because there’s no service, we couldn’t send a distress signal at all and the only thing you have out there is hope, hope that someone will find you, hope that a helicopter will fly over. Schwartzman said.

Two men who were tuna fishing eventually came across the group and pulled them aboard their own boat to get them to shore and to safety.

“We were looking for yellowfin tuna and then found a school of men,” joked Chris Keeran, one of the two men who rescued the group.

Former “Bachelorette” contestants Brayden Bowers (in life jacket) and Aaron Schwartzman (far right) were rescued after their boat sank off the coast of San Diego

Aaron (left) and Brayden (right) spoke to FOX 5 San Diego about the breathtaking parade

Brayden (left) and Aaron (right) in a photo from Instagram

Aaron – the owner of the sunken boat – said the group had been on the vessel for occasional fishing before the problems began.

“I finally bought the boat of my dreams, or so I thought, so that it would sink on me,” the reality TV contestant told the San Diego outlet.

According to the men, the sinking occurred after the fishing line of one of their party members became caught in the ship’s propeller.

“My buddy Gavin’s line got caught on the engine’s propeller, so Aaron just went to the back of the boat to lift the engine and try to untangle it,” Bowers said.

“All of a sudden, as soon as he was on the swim deck… the boat literally sank,” the cruise nurse continued, describing the frightening moment.

The five men who were on the boat that day all work as first responders, including in healthcare, the military and fire departments.

Aaron, a firefighter, told KSWB that their experience in stressful situations prepared them for the horrific incident.

“You think about the next steps, but what are the next steps when you’re 15 out in the ocean,” Aaron said.

They folded their arms and tried to paddle to shore, but had no success until Chris Keeran and his cousin TJ – also fishing – noticed the wayward group in the water.

Aaron Schwartzman (left) and Brayden Bowers in promotional photos for “Bachelor in Paradise”

Brayden and Aaron met while filming The Bachelorette and have been friends ever since

Brayden (left) appears on “The Bachelorette” with Charity Lawson

Chris and TJ were on the water catching tuna when they saw something reflected in the water that caught their eye.

“For some reason we stopped by to see if there were any fish and that’s when we saw the guys in the water,” TJ said.

The two said they made unusual decisions that day and called the discovery in the water an act from above.

Still, they say they simply did the right thing.

“We don’t consider ourselves heroes; “We do everything that any other fisherman would consider,” Keeran said.

“I’m just so thankful, by the grace of God, that we actually saw something thoughtful,” he continued.

“Just the things that had to come together to get to her.” “I mean, once we found her, that was our best catch of the day,” the fisherman told the outlet.

Aaron (pictured) is a firefighter in the San Diego area

Chris Keeran (left) and his cousin TJ were the ones who found the group in the water

Brayden (left) and Aaron (right) with former Bachelorette Katie Thurston

Aaron and Brayden are both expected to appear on ABC’s upcoming season of Bachelor in Paradise, which airs September 28.

Aaron and Brayden met while filming the charity season of The Bachelorette, which aired earlier this year and ended with the therapist’s engagement to Dotun Olubeko.

During their season, Aaron and Brady gained notoriety by making it to the third and fourth weeks of the season, respectively.

Brayden – who has 25,000 followers on Instagram – became a star for wearing statement earrings and voluntarily leaving the show in the fourth week.

Both men are scheduled to appear on ABC’s upcoming season of “Bachelor in Paradise,” which airs Sept. 28.