Tragedy Strikes Memorial Gathering With One Dead and Three Missing After Boat Sinks on San Francisco Bay

Story Updated 2:07 p.m.(PT)

One person has died, and according to latest reports, three are missing, after a boat took on water and sank on San Francisco Bay on Tuesday afternoon. San Francisco fire chief Dean Crispen told reporters they received a call at 3:35 p.m. Tuesday alerting them to a boat on fire, approximately 600 yards off Alcatraz. San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) were the first authorities on the scene. There was no evidence of a fire; however the boat was sinking.

According to San Francisco Chronicle, the man who died has been identified as Clifford Boisa, 79, of Sutter County. Cliff was the elder brother of Volare’s owner John Biosa, 62. 

Authorities are focussing on finding the three missing people, thought it us unknown whether they are trapped in the sunken vessel or have been swept away. It is reported that officials planned to use sonar to locate the boat and explore whether it can be raised.

Chief Crispen told CBS News the SFPD found one person in the water in “severe distress.” They took him aboard and gave CPR, but he was pronounced deceased upon arrival at Gashouse Cove. Reports have been mixed about the number of people aboard the boat, but latest reports say there were a total of 20 souls aboard, one deceased, 16 rescued, and three remaining missing. A dog that was aboard also died. Lt. Mariano Elias of the SFPD told reporters that three of the 16 rescued had severe injuries (possibly impact from hitting the water) and required hospital treatment. It’s also hard to understand how injuries might have resulted from impact with the water, though perhaps the impact of waves pushing people up against the boat might have caused injuries.

The boat is believed be Volare, a 1981 50-ft Marine Trader, homeported in Stockton, CA. According to reports, Volare was carrying a group who had gathered for a memorial, to scatter the ashes of a deceased loved one.

“The reports we’ve had from witnesses [are] that there [were] rough seas, and apparently the vessel began to take on water and was turned over in the Bay,” Crispin told CBS. Eleven crews worked to enact the rescue and search for the missing passengers.

As all Bay Area sailors know, the waters in the Central Bay in the summer can be very challenging. While this was first reported to be a pontoon boat, it is now known to be a robust trawler, which we imagine should be up to the conditions on the Bay yesterday. Including the mystery of whether there was a fire involved, there remains a lot unknown about how this tragedy might have unfolded. One could imagine that, with 20 passengers on the top deck, rolling sideways in the Bay chop might have caused her to roll too far so that water started to get into the hull. Or it could have struck something in the water. There will certainly be lots to learn from this terrible accident.

This video published by KTVU FOX 2 shows the boat sinking on the Bay.

First responders, emergency workers and rescue vessels operated off the Gashouse Cove fuel dock and the parking lot reserved for emergencies like this. Many of California’s fuel docks were built in the 1960s to help manage this kind of crisis.

While many news reports did mention rough seas, they certainly weren’t any rougher than most sailors, wingfoilers and other boaters regularly experience while sailing San Francisco Bay. We are experiencing king tides, which could account for some additional chop, but realistically, it feels as if something unusual happened to cause this tragic accident. These were “normal” Bay conditions, so some other explanation is probably needed to understand why a solidly built 50-ft trawler somehow faltered on the Bay.

The story is unfolding so we will add to it as we learn more.