Video: Daring leap of faith... cat, coat, man... sailboat to ship

A Frenchman with his cat tucked inside his coat made a daring leap of faith by jumping to a waiting rescue ship from his sailboat, which was being battered by high seas south of Alaska.

The Coast Guard captured dramatic video of the rescue Tuesday as the man jumped onto the Tor Viking, an oil drilling support ship returning to Washington state after Shell ceased operations off Alaska's northwest coast.

The man on the sailboat reported he had lost both his rigging and rudder about 400 miles (640 kilometers) south of Cold Bay, Alaska.

The Tor Viking was nearby and acted as a good Samaritan to rescue the man in 20-foot (six-meter) seas and gale force winds.

The Coast Guard marked the sailboat's position, and it wasn't immediately clear if the unnamed French mariner and his cat would continue to Port Angeles, Washington state, with the Shell vessels.