10 People Rescued After Fishing Boat Overturns Off Haulover Beach

HAULOVER BEACH (CBSMiami) – Miami-Dade firefighters rescued 10 people who were stranded a mile off Haulover Beach after their 22-foot boat overturned.

Firefighters said they received a 911 call of a capsized boat at around 5 p.m. Tuesday.

CBS4 News received cellphone video from a boat passenger showing passengers in life vests sitting calmly as rescue crews arrived.

"Water kept coming in. It tipped left. It tipped right. Then, it finally tipped over and we just all jumped on top," Romero Maragh said.

The 19-year-old was one of the passengers. He told CBS4's Ty Russell that he along with friends and family were on a fishing trip for about an hour when suddenly they needed help.

"The main thing that made us stay above is just that we all stayed calm," Maragh said.

The people on the boat tried to yell for help but nobody heard them. However, at least two passengers kept their phones dry to call 911.

"Unfortunately, they couldn't hear us. They came shortly after. Once we saw the guys on the jet skis, we knew we would be OK," Maragh said.

Firefighters don't know why caused the boat to take on water. Investigators don't suspect anything suspicious.

"A spontaneous event that occurred. It does happen in boating," Lt. George Izquierdo said.

Firefighters appreciated everyone wearing life vests. The rescued passengers are thankful for the first responders.

"None of us lost our lives or got injured or anything like that. So, we are all grateful," the teen said.

The report regarding the boating accident will be available in a few weeks. That could determine the cause of what went wrong.

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