Coast Guard and Navy helicopters rescued five fishermen and a dog from a sinking commercial fishing boat off San Clemente Island early Wednesday morning, the Coast Guard reported.
Crew members of 45-foot The San Diego were flown to San Diego's Coast Guard station before being transported back to Los Angeles, where the boat is based, said Coast Guard Lt. Bill Mello in San Diego. No one was injured.
After fishing for sea urchins Tuesday, The San Diego anchored for the night in an inlet off the island's China Point. Shortly before 4 a.m., one of the crew members woke up and discovered that the boat was taking on water, according to the Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard received a radio distress call from The San Diego saying that the bilges of the wood-hulled vessel were flooding, Mello said. A Coast Guard cutter responding to the call used pumps in an attempt to keep The San Diego afloat.
