Fierce competition among sponge fishermen forces a Greek-American family to fish in the dangerous 12-mile reef area off the western coast of Florida.
Mike and Tony Petrakis are a Greek father and son team who dive for sponges off the coast of Florida. After they are robbed by crooks, Arnold and the Rhys brothers, Mike decides to take his men to the dangerous 12-mile reef to dive for more sponges. Mike suffers a fatal accident when he falls from the reef leaving Tony to carry on the business. But now he has a companion, Gwyneth Rhys.—Kelly
When their traditional sea beds no longer produce enough sponges for them to make a decent living, divers Mike Petrakis and his son Tony have to look elsewhere. Others in the close-knit Greek sponge-diving community have started going to the 12 mile reef but Mike will have nothing to do with the area since his other son died there in a diving accident. They try their hands in the Everglades but come up against Thomas Rhys and Arnold Dix who rob them. With few choices left to them, they head to the deadly reef where tragedy awaits them - and for Tony, love in the form of Rhys' daughter Gwyneth.—garykmcd