The Night We Almost Lost Everything: How a Storm Tested Our Limits and Changed Our Business and Life Forever
Every entrepreneur's journey has a turning point—a moment when you realize that everything you've built and everything you stand for is being put to the test. For us, that moment came one stormy night on the Florida coast. It was the kind of night where you could feel the weight of the clouds hanging low, the wind howling through every crack, and the rain hitting the ground so hard it almost felt like something personal. And as luck (or fate) would have it, that was the night our business would be tested in a way we never saw it coming.
The Call That Changed Everything
Fernando and I had been grinding away for months, laser-focused on serving federal agencies, especially the U.S. Coast Guard. It was our dream to work with them, but let me tell you, getting your foot in the door is tough. We had bid on contracts, hoped for the best, and been turned away every time we tried. We knew we had the skills, the drive, and the passion for the ocean—but it felt like the universe wasn't ready to let us prove it just yet.
Then, on that wild, stormy night, we got a call that would change everything for us. A connection at the U.S. Coast Guard base in Port Everglades reached out to us with an urgent request. One of their search-and-rescue vessels had a cable line tangled deep in the impeller, the boat was stuck, and they needed it back in the ocean immediately.
I felt a surge of adrenaline. This was it! Our chance. But the timing couldn't have been worse.
We were in West Palm Beach, 2-hours away from the Coast Guard base, and all our tools were locked up in a marina down in Miami, completely out of our reach.
To make matters worse, every hardware store between us and the base was already closed.
No tools, no time, no margin for error.
A Dollar Store Knife and a Leap of Faith
At that moment, the only option we had was to improvise. And when I say improvise, I mean really improvise. We ended up buying a kitchen knife from a dollar store; yes, you read exactly right, a kitchen knife. It was the only tool we could get our hands on, and it had to be enough.
With the storm raging around us, we drove like madmen from West Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale. The wind was tossing the rain sideways, and visibility was nearly zero. All I could think about was the opportunity we had, a real, life-changing chance to prove ourselves. Yet, beneath that excitement was the terrible fear that we were completely unprepared.
We arrived at the base, soaked, cold, and shaking with a mix of nerves and adrenaline. Fernando, ever the hands-on expert, geared up for the dive. I watched him, my heart pounding, as he grabbed the flimsy kitchen knife, zipped up his wetsuit, and disappeared into the dark water beneath the vessel.
Fear in the Darkness
I was standing on the deck, watching the storm whip the waves around us, I felt helpless. Fernando was down there, doing the impossible, trying to untangle a thick copper line cable from a vital part of the boat with nothing but a kitchen knife and his willpower while the wind howled, and the waves slapped hard against the hull. I could barely see him through the black water, and the longer I stood there, the more my nerves spiraled out of control.
The minutes stretched on, each one feeling like an hour. I started imagining the worst:
sharks lurking in the water, the possibility that Fernando would get trapped or, worse, not resurface at all, and the storm…
IT WAS ONLY GETTING WORSE.
The rain was slamming against my face, the wind was cutting through my wet clothes, and all I could do was just stand there, staring at the angry sea and hoping that Fernando would come back up.
After what felt like an eternity, he returned to the surface, gasping for air. His face was pale, and I could see the exhaustion in his eyes. He'd run out of oxygen and needed to switch tanks. But even more concerning was the look he gave me, the one that said,
"This is worse than I thought."
It turned out that the job was far more dangerous than we had anticipated. Wedging himself into narrow chambers under the vessel, his arm twisting in impossible angles, trying to break through the copper cable line. The friction from the back-and-forth movement was shredding his forearm, and the knife—the only tool we had—was barely cutting through.
The Moment It All Came Crashing Down
As Fernando went back underwater for the second time, the sky was already completely dark, and I couldn't take it anymore. The storm was raging at this point, the wind howling louder than before and the rain relentless. I was cold—so cold that my teeth were rattling uncontrollably—and my nerves had finally reached their breaking point.
My body was soaked through, and I was shaking, in that moment every instinct in my mind was telling me to run for shelter.
I retreated to our truck, defeated.
There I was, the person responsible for the holistic side of the business, hiding in a truck, praying that my partner—my friend—would come out alive. I couldn't even bring myself to care about the job anymore. I just wanted him to be okay.
The Coast Guard officers, who had been checking in on us throughout the night understood how serious things were at this moment. Fernando was still out there in the storm, fighting the elements and the darkness to free that impeller from the copper line.
My mind was racing:
What if he doesn't make it back? What if all of this—our business, our reputation, our dreams—comes crashing down tonight?
A Turning Point in More Ways Than One
Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, Fernando resurfaced from the bottom. He was bleeding, exhausted, and shaking cold, but the job was DONE.
He had managed to free the stuck line from the impeller, and the Coast Guard officers were finally able to continue with their rescue missions. We later learned that the vessel we'd repaired was used successfully to save a family stranded in the storm soon after we were gone.
That's when it hit me: if we hadn't stuck it out if Fernando hadn't risked his life, that family might not have made it through the night.
Everything changed for us that night. It wasn't just about proving ourselves to the Coast Guard anymore. It was about realizing what it means to be truly committed to something—to each other, to our business, to the people we serve.
It was a turning point, not only in our professional journey but in the way we see ourselves as a team.
Lessons from the Storm
As I look back now, I see some key takeaways from that night that may resonate deeply with anyone reading this:
Be prepared, even for the worst: We went into this job without the right tools, and it nearly cost us everything. Having the proper equipment can save you time, stress, and, in some cases, even lives. Lesson learned: always be ready for the unexpected.
Adapt when the situation requires it: That night, we didn't have a fancy toolkit. We had a dollar-store knife and a lot of determination. Sometimes, you just have to do what you can with what you've got and find a way through the chaos.
Trust your partners: In business and life, trust is almost everything. That night, I trusted Fernando with his life, and he trusted me to support him from the surface. Without that trust, we wouldn't have made it.
It's alright to admit when you're scared: I was terrified that night! I let the fear wash over me, and in the end, it was okay. Fear is a feeling mechanism meant to keep us alive and away from danger. Still, fear can sometimes limit our potential for growth and expansion if we allow it to get the best of us. It is okay to experience fear, especially in uniquely difficult situations, but what matters is pushing through it and staying focused on the task at hand.
That night wasn't just about freeing the line entangled and surviving. It was also about discovering who we are as a team and as partners for life and business. We came out stronger, more resilient, and ready to face whatever the ocean throws our way next.
This is just the beginning of the journey. If you're looking for more practical insights and real-world lessons from our experiences, explore the rest of R12 Blog. Or click a title below the author’s bio to read next:
