11 missing, survivors suffer shark bites after boat capsizes off Baja California – USA Today

11 missing, survivors suffer shark bites after boat capsizes off Baja California  USA Today

SAN DIEGO — Eleven people remained missing on Oct. 18 after a boat carrying 27 people capsized off the coast of Baja California, and several survivors suffered injuries consistent with shark bites, the U.S. Coast Guard said. The Coast Guard's Southwest District said watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector San Diego received a radio distress call at about 1 a.m. local time on Oct. 16 reporting a vessel taking on water about 140 miles west of Ensenada, Mexico. Search crews were deployed to the area and rescued 16 people, who were later transferred to local hospitals for medical evaluation. Three of the people rescued "sustained injuries consistent with shark bites" after the boat, which departed from Mexico, capsized, the Coast Guard said in a statement to USA TODAY.

The agency had no updated information on the survivors’ medical conditions as of Oct. 18. "Coast Guard personnel provided lifesaving first aid during transport to San Diego, where all 16 individuals were transferred to awaiting emergency medical services personnel for further evaluation and treatment at local hospitals," the agency said in the statement. Reports to the Coast Guard "indicated that there may have been 27 people aboard," according to the agency. The Mexican consulate in San Diego confirmed that all of the rescued were Mexican nationals, The Associated Press reported. USA TODAY reached