27 People in the Water Off Baja California: Coast Guard Rescues 16, Search Continues
San Diego is a city in San Diego County, California. The U.S. Coast Guard Southwest district said a vessel sent a distress call at about 1 a.m. on Oct. 16 reporting it was taking on water roughly 140 miles west of Ensenada, Mexico. Survivors said as many as 27 people had been aboard; when rescue crews arrived, the people were floating in open water and the vessel itself had not been located.
At least 16 people have been rescued and taken to hospitals in the San Diego area, and about 11 people remain unaccounted for. Coast Guard helicopters, a fixed-wing aircraft and a cutter are searching the area jointly with Mexican maritime authorities, while ambulances and first responders stand by at the Coast Guard station on San Diego's Embarcadero to receive survivors.
Jose Ysea, a spokesperson for the City of San Diego, confirmed to NBC San Diego that the vessel was a human smuggling boat and said more victims may still be in the water. The Coast Guard said it could not confirm the vessel's nature. Officials have not released the identities, nationalities or medical conditions of those aboard, and the cause of the incident remains under investigation. Search and rescue operations were still under way as of publication.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国海岸警卫队MH-60直升机在圣迭戈湾进行海上搜救演示（资料图）；本次救援的官方现场照片尚未发布。图片：美国海岸警卫队一级军士长罗布·辛普森（Rob Simpson）摄，公共领域。Photo: A U.S. Coast Guard MH-60 helicopter conducts a search-and-rescue demonstration over San Diego Bay (file photo); no official photos of this rescue had been released as of publication. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Rob Simpson, public domain.
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