Reza Baluchi, a survivalist who is no stranger to dangerous situations, was rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard while attempting to run the outline of the Bermuda Triangle in a bubble contraption.

Man Rescued From Bubble In Bermuda Triangle

Baluchi’s goal was to run from South Florida to Bermuda, to Puerto Rico and back to South Florida. When the Coast Guard spotted him in his “bubble,” a plastic and metal contraption that allows the athlete to run on water, they immediately feared for his safety, reported the Washington Post. Upon learning that Baluchi only had protein bars, bottled water and a satellite phone aboard, they grew increasingly concerned.

Though Baluchi initially rejected the Coast Guard’s offer to bring him to safety, by Saturday, the Coast Guard claims he gave a distress call.

“He activated both his spot beacon and personal locating beacon. That’s a distress call. When he activated those two things, he was calling for help,” Petty Officer Mark Barney, a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard, told the Miami Herald.

Baluchi, however, claims that he accidentally activated the beacon and meant to continue on his feat. “I never quit,” he said. “It’s not me.” Baluchi is also displeased with the fact that the Coast Guard did not manage to recover his bubble, though the Coast Guard says that the contraption was not a priority.

“Our concern is not the bubble,” Barney told the Herald. “Our main concern was to get him out of the water. It was caught up in the same Gulf Stream he was caught in. If it didn’t sink, or unless someone retrieved it, the stream shot it up north. It’s a very powerful current.”

Prior to going on the adventure, Baluchi had taken to his website to describe the Hydro Pod or “bubble,” and the difficult environment it would create for him. “Being inside the Hydro Pod is not going to be a walk in the park, it will be very hot and humid. One can easily dehydrate quickly and lose breath,” according to the website. “Reza has devised this Hydro Pod to prevent physical difficulties. But not anyone can use without being mentally and physically fit. Being mentally fit is the main component to be able to survive a long journey in the Hydro Pod.”

According to the website, Baluchi was hoping to raise funds for his nonprofit Plant Unity. “Reza is doing this dangerous journey to raise money for children in need and to give inspire those that have lost hope for a better future,” it says. “Also to raise awareness for his Non-Profit Organization called Plant Unity.”

Baluchi, who was granted political asylum from Iran after claiming he was persecuted in the country for anti-Islamic beliefs, first made headlines in 2003. Nearly two years after the Sept. 11 attacks, he ran from the West Coast to Ground Zero in Manhattan with an America flag in an effort to help improve American perceptions of Middle Eastern men and women in the country.

In 2007, Baluchi ran the perimeter of the United States to raise money for the Children’s Hospital in Denver. In 2009, he ran from L.A. to New York and in 2010 he ran from Death Valley to California’s Mount Whitney.