This is the miraculous moment a man was rescued after spending three days at sea drifting on an ice chest.

Udin Diman, 46, was found off the coast in North Maluku province, Indonesia on September 17 afternoon after he had gone missing for three days.

The fisherman left his home on September 14 morning to catch some seafood to sell, but had not returned that night so his family became worried.

After 24 hours had passed, they reported the incident to police who deployed a search and rescue team in the area.

The team patrolled the area where Udin and other villagers normally go fishing, but he was not there.

They found him after two days of searching further into the ocean, floating on an orange ice and a fish container.

Rescue team head Muhamad Arafah said: "We are not yet sure how he survived without food and water for three days, but he is a lucky man. We're glad we found him."

The starving and extremely dehydrated man was rushed to the hospital upon reaching the nearby port.

He did not have any serious injuries so he was allowed to go home later that day after being given food and water.

Speaking after, Udin said he was pushed further into the deeper parts of the ocean by strong currents.

His boat toppled and capsized over so he clung to the ice chest and had drifted in it for days.

He said: "I was alternately passing out because of hunger and sleeping until the rescuers found me."

The grateful fisherman went home with his family after a few hours at the hospital.