The Coast Guard says a helicopter with three people on board went into the Gulf of Mexico 80 miles south of New Orleans, but a good Samaritan rescued all three and got them to a nearby rig.

Petty Officer Brandon Padilla says 24-year-old Rusty Carole of Galliano, 43-year-old Stanly Duhon of Duson, and 34-year-old Keith Milard of Nashville, Tenn., were unhurt and in the water when the vessel arrived.

He says a Coast Guard helicopter brought them from the rig to Houma, where they were taken for a hospital checkup.

The Coast Guard said the vessel heard the Coast Guard emergency broadcast after Rotorcraft Leasing Company LLC reported the accident.

It did not say what sort of vessel it was. Padilla did not know what company the three worked for or what they were doing.