HUNTINGTON BEACH — A 28-year-old man got knocked off his boat near Huntington Beach on Thursday morning and was rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after two hours in the water, officials said.

The Coast Guard Cutter Halibut was on a routine patrol when it discovered an unmanned 14-foot dinghy going around in circles at 8:15 a.m. Aug. 24 about five miles south of Huntington Harbour, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

A search for the boat’s operator began, with Coast Guard and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department helicopters helping.

About two hours later, the man, identified as Tony White, was spotted floating in the ocean without a life jacket about two miles away from the dinghy, said Petty Officer Mark Barney of the Coast Guard.

A Coast Guard swimmer rescued the man, who was uninjured. It is unknown where White, whose city of residence is also not known, was headed or where he weighed anchor. Barney said White works in the mussel industry, potentially farming them.

White told the Coast Guard that a wave had hit the dinghy, sending him overboard. He explained what happened to CBS News.

“My hat blew off. And I instinctually reached to grab it,” White said. “… When I let go of the wheel, (the boat) did six revolutions to the right and made a 90-degree turn and (I) went flying over the side.”

He told the station he used his flip-flops on his hands to help him swim.

The Coast Guard, in its statement, urged people to wear life jackets when on the ocean.

White was shaken by the experience and said he won’t be going out alone again — or without a life vest.

“For the first time in my life, it was probably the closest to near-death experience I’ve had,” White told CBS. “You’re out there, and it’s 155 feet deep and nothing for miles.”