Quick Answer: Eleven people are still missing after a boat capsized in Ensenada waters early Friday morning. The U.S. Coast Guard rescued 16 survivors from the Pacific about 140 miles west of Ensenada, Mexico — several with injuries consistent with shark bites — and says a multi-agency search with the U.S. Navy and the Mexican Navy is still underway.
Key Takeaways
- A distress call came in around 1 a.m. local time Friday, reporting a vessel taking on water roughly 140 miles (225 km) west of Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico.
- Survivors told the Coast Guard 27 people were aboard. Sixteen were pulled from the water; 11 were still missing as of Sunday, Oct. 18.
- Three of the rescued suffered injuries consistent with shark bites, the Coast Guard said.
- The search involves Coast Guard air stations in Ventura and Sacramento, the cutter Active, the USS Kingsville, a Navy helicopter, and the Mexican Navy.
- The Coast Guard says the vessel was on a route “normally used in illegal maritime smuggling operations,” but has not confirmed what the boat was doing.
Eleven people remained unaccounted for on Sunday as U.S. and Mexican crews searched the Pacific Ocean off Mexico’s Baja California coast for passengers of a boat that capsized two days earlier, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
What happened in Ensenada waters
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector San Diego received a radio distress call at about 1 a.m. local time on Friday, Oct. 16, reporting a vessel taking on water approximately 140 miles west of Ensenada, according to the Coast Guard’s Southwest District. A rescue helicopter reached the area about two hours later, and it took crews roughly 90 minutes to pull 16 people from the water, Lt. Santiago Tamburini told reporters.
“People were holding onto each other, to debris, just treading and trying to stay above water before being rescued,” Tamburini said.
Survivors told officials there were 27 people aboard the boat that capsized, leaving 11 missing. Rescuers found debris and floating seats in the search area. The Mexican consulate in San Diego confirmed all 16 of those rescued were Mexican nationals, the Associated Press reported.
US Coast Guard search-and-rescue operation continues
The US Coast Guard said search-and-rescue efforts were ongoing as of Sunday, Oct. 18, with support from the U.S. Navy and the Mexican Navy. No additional people had been found by then, and the agency has not released the name of any missing boater.
Assets deployed after the distress call included crews from Coast Guard Air Station Ventura and Air Station Sacramento, the Coast Guard Cutter Active, the USS Kingsville, and a Navy helicopter assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 23. About 60 fire and medical personnel responded on the San Diego side, with 13 ambulances transporting survivors to local hospitals, according to Brian Raines, assistant fire chief for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.
Shark attack injuries among the survivors
Three of the people rescued “sustained injuries consistent with shark bites” after the boat capsized, the Coast Guard said in a statement to USA Today. Coast Guard personnel provided lifesaving first aid during transport to San Diego, where all 16 survivors were transferred to emergency medical services for evaluation at local hospitals. The agency said it had no updated information on the survivors’ medical conditions as of Oct. 18.
A route “normally used” for smuggling
The boat went down outside U.S. waters in an area frequented by smugglers, the Coast Guard said. “This case highlights the extreme dangers of taking to the sea,” said Capt. Robert Tucker, commander of Coast Guard Sector San Diego. “The vessel had a large number of people onboard and was following a route normally used in illegal maritime smuggling operations. Offshore conditions are unforgiving and can quickly result in death.”
Tucker did not say the vessel was definitively a smuggling boat. Lt. Tamburini said rescuers “cannot yet confirm whether this vessel was part of that enterprise or just a recreational or commercial fishing vessel,” and Customs and Border Protection was interviewing the survivors.
The incident has also renewed questions about safety for small craft operating out of Ensenada, Mexico. The Coast Guard’s warning was blunt: “Offshore conditions are unforgiving and can quickly result in death.”
Deadly maritime incidents near the California coast have occurred before. In May 2025, a panga-style vessel carrying migrants capsized in heavy surf near Del Mar, north of San Diego, killing at least four people. In March 2023, eight people died after two suspected smuggling boats approached a San Diego beach in heavy fog — one of the deadliest maritime smuggling tragedies in the area.
For the latest on Pacific weather threats facing Mexico’s coast, see our coverage of Hurricane Trudy’s path along Mexico’s Pacific shoreline. For background on verifying dramatic breaking-news images, see our guide to spotting fake breaking-news photos and videos.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened to the boat that capsized in Ensenada waters?
A boat carrying a reported 27 people capsized about 140 miles west of Ensenada, Mexico, early Friday, Oct. 16, after sending a distress call around 1 a.m. Sixteen people were rescued; 11 were still missing as of Sunday, Oct. 18, with the search ongoing.
How many people are still missing after the boat capsized?
Eleven people remained missing as of Oct. 18, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. No additional survivors had been found since the initial rescue of 16 people on Friday.
Were the survivors attacked by sharks?
Three of the rescued survivors sustained injuries consistent with shark bites, the Coast Guard said. Several others were treated for cold exposure. The agency provided lifesaving first aid while transporting them to San Diego hospitals.
Was the capsized boat carrying migrants?
That has not been confirmed. The Coast Guard said the vessel was on a route “normally used in illegal maritime smuggling operations,” and Customs and Border Protection is interviewing survivors — but officials said they cannot yet confirm whether it was a smuggling vessel or a recreational or commercial fishing boat.
Where is Ensenada?
Ensenada is a port city in the Mexican state of Baja California, south of San Diego. The boat capsized in the Pacific Ocean about 140 miles (225 km) west of the city — outside U.S. waters, in an area popular with fishing and leisure boats but also frequented by smugglers.
Sources: U.S. Coast Guard Southwest District (official statements); USA Today; Al Jazeera; The Associated Press (via USA Today); NBC 7 San Diego.
