Four boaters made it back safely to Volusia County shores, after search and rescue crews spent hours trying to find them.

But it turned out they weren’t really “missing” after all. The U.S. Coast Guard says it all boiled down to a miscommunication.

Officials say one of the boaters called 911 around 6:30 Saturday morning, saying the boat was taking on water.

The call dropped before that boater could communicate that the group had managed to resolve the issue — and everything was fine.

So, according to what the Coast Guard knew — there were people on the water who needed help.

Several crews were dispatched to search for the boaters by water and by air. None of the attempts to reach the cell phone the boaters used to call for help were successful.

It wasn’t until much later in the day that a family member finally got through and confirmed the miscommunication.

The boaters all returned safely to shore.

“I didn’t even know what had happened before all of this, and then hearing that they’re safe, it’s a relief…because it could happen to one of us, or any of us today," said Rebecca Chapman, who watched the Coast Guard boats go by earlier in the day with sirens blaring.

Coast Guard officials say all boaters need to make sure they have multiple forms of communication on board when hitting the water, including radios or satellite phones, to maintain communication when cell service drops out.

Experts say you should also make sure someone on land knows what your plan is — when you’re leaving, where you’re going and when you’re coming back — in case of emergency.