Swimming alone off a beach at night can be dangerous. A Chinese tourist learned this when she was swept out to sea in the central Shizuoka region of Japan on 8 July. When the woman’s friend could not find her, she sought help at a nearby convenience store which called the Coast Guard.

A Japan Coast Guard team did not find the missing swimmer. It was the crew of a cargo ship that spotted her floating off the southern tip of Chiba’s Boso peninsula, some 80 kilometers offshore, 36 hours after she went missing, Agence France-Presse reports. The crew of the ship swam to get her and bring her on board.

It was fortunate that the Chinese national in her 20s was wearing a life ring that kept her afloat until rescuers arrived.

Australian body surfer Rick Shearman, 49, also needed to be rescued when he was swept out to sea at Tallow Beach in Byron Bay on 13 July.

Shearman avoided big waves by going underwater and allowing the current to tow him away from the dangerous spots. However, the current was headed “straight out to sea” and he found himself stranded half a mile from the beach when he surfaced as there was no discernible route back to shore, the New York Post (NYP) reported.

He did not have any life-saving equipment with him but the Apple Watch he was wearing came in handy.

As Shearman was being buffeted by the wind and big swells, he struggled to call for rescue on his gadget. He managed to stay on the line for an hour until responders located him, according to NYP.

A helicopter plucked him from the water and he was flown to safety.

Rescuers said that if Shearman hadn’t been wearing his Apple Watch, the rescue might have taken days, ending tragically.