A photo provided by Carnival Cruise Line shows the Carnival Radiance alongside a small boat in need of rescue.

The U.S. Coast Guard called in a Long Beach-based cruise ship to rescue 25 people who were stranded in a small boat off the coast of Mexico this weekend.

The Coast Guard had been searching for the boat after it was reported overdue Thursday, according to Public Affairs Officer Lt. SondraKay Kneen. When a military plane spotted the boat, the Carnival Radiance, which was on its way from Long Beach to Ensenada, happened to be nearby.

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The Coast Guard diverted the 2,984-passenger ship toward the boat, “and the rescue was quickly completed, with all 25 people, including three children, stranded on the boat safely welcomed onto Carnival Radiance,” according to a statement from Carnival Cruise Line.

Radiance’s crew offered the boaters food, water and medical help before coordinating a rendezvous with the Coast Guard. The ship’s trip to Ensenada remained on schedule, Carnival said.

The Coast Guard said no further information was available.

Jeremiah Dobruck is executive editor of the Long Beach Post where he oversees all day-to-day newsroom operations. In his time working as a journalist in Long Beach, he’s won numerous awards for his investigative reporting and editing. Before coming to the Post in 2018, he wrote for publications including the Press-Telegram, Orange County Register and Los Angeles Times. Reach him at [email protected] or @jeremiahdobruck on Twitter.