1 dead, 2 missing after boat capsizes near Alcatraz in San Francisco Bay

One person is dead and two other people are missing near Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay after a boat with 19 people aboard capsized Tuesday afternoon, officials said. A vessel was reported to be on fire around 600 yards off Alcatraz around 3:35 p.m., and police found a capsized three-deck pontoon boat, San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen said. The incident was initially reported as a fire, but no first responders reported witnessing a blaze, Crispen said. Everyone on the boat is believed to have been an adult, he said. A dog was also on board and is dead, he said. Thirteen people were safely rescued, and three more were taken to hospitals, Crispen said. Firefighters are “in full rescue mode,” with 11 boats and divers as part of the response, he said. “We are going to continue for hours to make sure that we find these two missing people, if possible,” Crispen said. “It seemed like a recreational-type vessel, but that’s all we know at this point,” he told reporters. The vessel reportedly launched from a yacht club, and investigators were still gathering information, he said. Helicopter video from NBC Bay Area showed responding rescue boats and debris floating in the water. Video from the station appeared to show some of the rescued people with blankets on shore. Local police departments and private vessels also responded, Crispen said. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said, “This is an all-hands-on-deck search and hopefully rescue.” When first responders arrived, some people were in the water, others were on the sinking boat, and others were falling into the water, Crispen said. Crispen said that at this time of year there are typically whitecaps in the water from wind, which is challenging. But, he said, regardless of the wind, “we’re going to continue to search either way.” Alcatraz Island is the site of the famous prison around 1 mile offshore in San Francisco Bay. It was closed as a federal prison in 1963 and is now a national park. Crispen said the search would be extensive. “Our standard operating procedure is to continue to search as long as it’s safe enough for us to search,” he said. He said divers were in the water, helicopters were above, and officials were searching areas where survivors in the water would tend to move to. “This search will go on for some time,” he said.