Nolan Wells' Friend Panics During Emergency Call, Says Boat Is Sinking at Horn Island

Nolan Wells' friend seemed panicked when the boat they were on started taking on water ... struggling to answer a tow service dispatcher's basic questions in newly released audio.

The call -- which was placed to Sea Tow, not 911 -- begins with the dispatcher asking what the issue is. The boat's operator says the boat is sinking and the bilge pump isn't working.

The dispatcher asks for membership information, which the boat's operator doesn't seem to have or know ... before he gives the dispatcher GPS coordinates.

When asked what he wants the towing service to do, the operator says he wants the boat "unsank" and towed back to shore.

In one particularly humorous moment, the dispatcher asks how many people are onboard -- including how many adults -- and the caller says there are no children and also no one over the age of 21.

This confuses the dispatcher ... who asks instead how many living, breathing people are on the boat.

Once the dispatcher calls the tow boat captain, she explains there are young people on the boat who are panicking.

The captain says he's actually in touch with the boat operator's grandfather, Jerry Adkerson, -- the man who recently let authorities search his boat and check the GPS coordinates to aid their investigation.

The captain says the grandfather just told him the situation was handled ... and the people onboard don't actually need assistance ... despite what they just told the dispatcher.

Basically, it's complete chaos ... with the boater's panic certainly complicating the situation.

As you know, Nolan's friends say he stayed behind at Horn Island when they had their boat towed offshore ... and he was found dead just days after this call was placed ... his body washing up near where he was last seen alive.