The U.S. Coast Guard airlifted a man and his dog to safety on Thursday after they became stranded on a sailboat while Hurricane Helene battered Florida.

Video of the rescue operation shows a member of the U.S. Coast Guard drop down from a helicopter and approach the man and dog, both wearing life jackets.

The pair can be seen jumping into the sea and swimming to a harness before they are airlifted to safety.

The man's 10-metre boat was approximately 40 kilometres off Sanibel Island when it became disabled and started taking on water.