Survivors Speak: People rescued from the inflatable boat near Alcatraz are revealing the t3rrifying final moments as the search for the missing continues
One person is dead, three people remain missing and 16 others were rescued Tuesday after a pontoon boat capsized near Alcatraz Island off the coast of San Francisco, authorities said.
San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispin said during a news conference that 19 people were aboard the vessel. Authorities later updated the passenger count to 20 and said three people remained missing. Thirteen survivors made it safely to shore, while three others were transported to a hospital.
One of the people pulled from the water received CPR and was later pronounced dead, Crispin said.
Crispin described the vessel as a three-deck pontoon boat that was roughly 600 yards from Alcatraz Island when the boat capsized.
A pontoon boat burns near Alcatraz Island off the coast of San Francisco on Tuesday after catching fire, prompting a rescue operation in which 17 people were pulled from the water while one person remained missing, authorities said. (KTVU)
Crispin said the San Francisco Fire Department initially responded to a report of a vessel fire around 3:35 p.m., but crews instead found a capsized boat. He later said there was no evidence of a fire.
Authorities, including the U.S. Coast Guard, have 11 vessels, divers and helicopters searching for the two missing people, Crispin said.
“It’s a very active scene,” he said, adding that the search would likely continue into the evening.
Fire Lt. Mariano Elias later told Fox News Digital that search operations would continue overnight and into Wednesday morning.
Emergency crews rescued survivors after a recreational boat capsized near Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay on Tuesday. (KTVU)
Crispin described the boat as a recreational vessel.
The San Francisco Police Department’s marine unit found the vessel capsized and mostly submerged, with fuel leaking into the water and the engine still running, Crispin said. One person was found in the water, while the remaining occupants were found inside the top compartment of the vessel and were rescued.
Rescuers pulled people from the water after a recreational boat capsized near Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay on Tuesday, leaving one person dead and two missing. (KTVU)
