Coast Guard continues search for missing fishermen

SAN DIEGO-The U.S. Coast Guard continues to look for two fishermen who were reported lost Saturday morning 60 miles west of San Clemente Island, California. Crews searched through the night for the 23-foot center consol Mexican fishing vessel with two people aboard, and will continue into Sunday. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Edisto was initially diverted to the scene to search but had to return to base due to mechanical problems. The U.S.S. Rushmore took over the search for the Edisto and remained on scene. U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Diego launched a 60T-Jayhawk helicopter just before six Sunday morning, and a C-130 Hercules aircraft from U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Sacramento, Calif., to assist in the search. The current weather on scene is two to three foot seas and winds are 10 to 15 knots with scattered rain showers in the forecast. The 23-foot fishing vessel left Ensenada, Mexico on the morning of November 4 with two people aboard, one of whom called a family member this morning stating they were out of fuel, adrift, scared and were in need of help. The family member then called the Coast Guard for assistance. A 60-Jayhawk helicopter from Coast Guard Sector San Diego was launched at 2 p.m., Saturday to look for the distressed fishing vessel, and the Coast Guard Cutter Edisto, a 110-foot patrol boat homeported in San Diego, was diverted to the search area of the last known position. A C-130 Hercules airplane from Coast Guard Air Station Sacramento, California, has also been launched to assist in the search. It has been reported that the mariners do not have any survival equipment on board with them. The weather on scene consisted of 10-foot seas with 12-foot swells and sustained winds of 15-20 miles per hour gusting to 30 MPH with the expectation of the weather expected to continue to worsen through the night.