11 missing, 16 rescued after boat sinks off Mexico's coast
A US Coast Guard rescue operation saved 16 Mexican nationals from the Pacific Ocean on Friday after receiving a distress call reporting a sinking vessel approximately 225 kilometers west of Ensenada, Mexico.
The Coast Guard received the mayday call around 1am Friday morning. A rescue helicopter arrived at the scene roughly two hours later, according to Lieutenant Santiago Tamburini. The rescue crew, including a swimmer, spent approximately 90 minutes extracting all 16 people from the water.
Survivors told Coast Guard officials that as many as 27 people had been aboard the vessel before it sank. The discrepancy means 11 people remain unaccounted for, prompting an extensive search operation covering approximately 950 square nautical miles (3,200 square kilometers).
The Mexican Consulate in San Diego confirmed all rescued individuals were Mexican nationals and has provided consular assistance to those hospitalized. Survivors were flown by helicopter to San Diego, California, where they received medical treatment. One person was treated for a suspected shark bite, while two others were reported in critical condition. Officials noted that some but not all of those rescued were wearing life vests when pulled from the water.
Great white sharks inhabit the waters off Baja California, as the region serves as a nursery for juvenile sharks, though attacks on humans remain rare.
Search-and-rescue operations continued overnight using two helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, Coast Guard cutters, and a Navy combat ship. The Mexican Navy has also deployed resources to assist in locating the missing individuals. Rescuers found debris at the scene but no intact vessel.
The type, origin, destination, and purpose of the boat remain unclear. The incident occurred in waters frequently used by smugglers transporting migrants to the United States, though the area also sees fishing and recreational boat traffic.
Pattern of dangerous maritime smuggling
Small boats called pangas are commonly used by smugglers who depart Mexico during nighttime hours and sometimes travel hundreds of miles north toward California. Officials indicate that migrants are increasingly turning to risky sea routes offered by smugglers to avoid heavily guarded land borders.
The region has witnessed several deadly maritime incidents in recent years. In May 2025, at least three people died when a panga vessel capsized about 35 miles (56 kilometers) north of the US-Mexico border. In 2023, eight people were killed in one of the deadliest maritime smuggling incidents in US waters when two boats approached a San Diego beach in heavy fog and one capsized in the surf.
Legal consequences for those piloting such vessels can be severe. In 2022, a federal judge sentenced a San Diego man to 18 years in prison for operating a vessel overloaded with 32 migrants that broke apart in powerful surf, killing three people and injuring more than two dozen.
The Coast Guard and Navy continue their search for the 11 missing individuals as the investigation into Friday's incident proceeds.
