SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A tragic incident unfolded off the coast of San Francisco on Tuesday afternoon, when a pontoon boat carrying mostly family members as part of a memorial service sank. This accident resulted in one fatality, three missing persons, and the successful rescue of 16 individuals.
When crews reached the area near Alcatraz Island, they encountered a troubling sight: a three-deck pontoon vessel almost completely submerged. The boat’s motor was still running and leaking fuel, according to San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen.
By Tuesday evening, a vigorous search was underway for the missing, extending into the open ocean west of the Golden Gate Bridge. The operation, involving divers, helicopters, and various vessels, was slated to continue through the night, officials mentioned.
Initially, authorities reported two individuals missing, but after receiving additional witness information, this number was updated to three.
“We are currently in full rescue mode,” Crispen stated, noting that three individuals who sustained injuries from falling overboard had been hospitalized but were anticipated to be discharged by Tuesday night.
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 a mile (about 1.6 kilometers) north of the city’s shoreline, in an often windy area that attracts sailboats and other recreational vessels.
Videos of the scene showed boats deployed to rescue people who had been on the vessel, which was largely submerged with objects floating nearby.
The boating mishap was initially reported as a fire, “but we now don’t have any evidence of that,” Crispen said.
The person who died was alive when plucked from the frigid waters by rescue crews but later died. A dog onboard also died.
All those rescued were taken to Gashouse Cove Marina, a small craft harbor in San Francisco.
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.
One woman’s head was injured.
“We figured we would get her first,” Anfinson said. A deckhand lowered a swim ladder and threw a life ring into the water to help pull her aboard.
“It was scary,” Anfinson said. “I don’t want to see anybody in that situation.”
Fire Lt. Mariano Elias said the vessel, described as a “pontoon pleasure boat,” was about 600 yards (about 550 meters) from Alcatraz and the emergency call came in just after 3:30 p.m.
Crispen said the vessel was believed to have launched near the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco. A person who answered the phone there said the club did not have any information on what happened.
Live video from the scene showed a man and a woman wrapped in blankets and sitting on a curb before walking to a nearby ambulance. A yellow tarp covered a body on the dock.
The Coast Guard and Oakland police also helped in the rescue, Elias said.
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