Coast Guard Rescues Two From Sinking Sailboat In San Francisco Bay

RICHMOND (CBS SF) -- The Coast Guard rescued two people from their sailboat after it began taking on water near Richmond on Saturday.

Coast Guard Sector San Francisco command center received a notification at 1:31 p.m. from the operator aboard a 16-foot sailboat, reporting that his boat had begun taking on water south of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

A Coast Guard 45-foot response boat was launched at 1:38 p.m. and arrived on scene at 2:01 p.m. But that time, the sailboat was barely above the water.

The two occupants of boat were brought to Richmond Marina. They were cold, but had no reported medical concerns.

"This case was able to be resolved quickly due to good communication between the mariners and our watchstanders," said Cmdr. Tim List, the Sector San Francisco search and rescue mission coordinator. "The Coast Guard recommends all boaters have a VHF radio that can tune to channel 16. Additionally, we recommend a fully charged cell phone as a backup in the event of an emergency on the water."

The owner was assisted by a fellow boater with the removal of his sailboat from the water.