Drillship crewmembers say they are being rescued

(KLFY) -- Crew members aboard the Noble Globetrotter II who say they've been stranded on the ship since Hurricane Ida hit said that some crewmen have already been transported to shore.

The Coast Guard told News 10 that 142 men were on the drillship. Crew members said they were forced to ride out the category 4 hurricane on the ship, and that even after it passed, no one came to their rescue.

Some crew members from the ship have spoken to News 10 and said some of their men have been transported to land. They also said the boat has been taking on water. According to crewmembers, at least 19 of the men were transported off of the ship on Wednesday.

A crewmember spoke with News 10, who's choosing to remain anonymous, said he's finally on his way home after living through a horrifying few days. He was transported off of the ship via helicopter on Thursday.

"We were all pretty happy. Yesterday we were psyched to get on that chopper, but our chopper got canceled at the last minute, so that was kind of deflating, but today we got on there and it's nice. There ain't really no words to describe the way we feel right now."

Several other crew members said they were also getting on flights to leave the ship on Thursday.

Noble Corporation confirmed that they are working to facilitate additional transport for crew members to shore.

Crew members say the rescue operation comes days after the drillship was slammed by Hurricane Ida. Many of them say they never thought they would actually make it out alive, describing in great detail that it felt like never-ending hours of horror.

News 10 has been in communication with Shell and Noble Corporation. Both companies have yet to confirm exactly how many of the 142 men have been removed from the vessel.