One person died, three people are missing and 16 others were rescued from the waters off San Francisco after a pontoon boat capsized Tuesday afternoon while carrying mostly family members as part of a memorial service, fire officials said in a news release.
The San Francisco Fire Department said that at approximately 3:37 p.m. local time on Tuesday, multiple 911 callers reported a vessel in distress on the San Francisco Bay near Alcatraz Island.
“Multiple public safety agencies responded with ground and water assets, including the San Francisco Police Department, San Francisco Fire Department, United States Coast Guard, Oakland Police Department, Tiburon Fire Department, and Southern Marin Fire Protection District, as well as commercial and recreational vessels in the area,” the San Francisco Fire Department said.
San Francisco Police Department Marine 3 was the first vessel to arrive on the scene and confirmed that a 49-foot cabin cruiser named Volare was in distress with steam that callers misinterpreted as smoke.
Marine 3 confirmed multiple people requiring rescue as additional public safety vessels from the San Francisco Fire Department and allied agencies arrived on scene, the San Francisco Fire Department added.
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“A total of 19 individuals were reported aboard the vessel. Seventeen people were rescued from the water. One of those rescued required life-saving measures and, unfortunately, succumbed to injuries sustained in this incident. Three others were transported to a local hospital and are in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries. A dog aboard the vessel was also confirmed deceased,” the San Francisco Fire Department revealed.
The fire department said, per witness statements, that three individuals remained missing, bringing the total to 20 people in this incident.
As of 8:30 p.m. local time on Tuesday, the United States Coast Guard and San Francisco Fire Department continued search and rescue operations for the three remaining missing individuals.
“These teams are using technologies such as thermal imaging, tide prediction, and modeling to help direct search efforts,” the San Francisco Fire Department said.
The three-deck pontoon vessel was almost fully underwater with the motor still running and leaking fuel when crews arrived on scene, San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen said at a news conference Tuesday night.
“Our understanding was there was some kind of memorial service that they were engaging in. That’s why they were using this particular vessel,” Crispen added.
“Right now we are in full rescue mode,” Crispen said, adding that three people who suffered injuries falling from the boat were taken to a hospital and expected to be released Tuesday night.
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“This is an all-hands-on-deck search and, hopefully, rescue,” San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said during the news conference.
The 16 people rescued were assisted on scene by the American Red Cross and Human Services Agency with food, blankets and family reunification, according to the fire department’s news release.
Aaron Anfinson, captain of the Bass-Tub, told the San Francisco Chronicle his boat was carrying guests toward the Golden Gate Bridge in “pretty windy, a little choppy” waters when a man on a smaller vessel flagged them down and pointed to a pontoon boat in the middle of the bay that appeared to be on fire.
By the time the Bass-Tub reached it, the flames were out, but the pontoon was sinking. Some people were already in the water while others remained aboard, Anfinson said, adding that they tried to hand out life-jackets to the passengers.
Alcatraz Island, once a federal prison infamously inescapable due to the strong ocean currents and cold Pacific waters that surround it, is now a tourist destination. It is located in San Francisco Bay about 1.6 kilometres north of the city’s shoreline, in an often windy area that attracts sailboats and other recreational vessels.
—With files from The Associated Press
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