Missing Boaters Found Safe Off LA Coast

RANCHO PALOS VERDES (CBSLA.com) — Three missing boaters were found safe Monday morning after their engine died and were left stranded overnight on board their 17-foot vessel.

The group was found in good condition by a fellow boater around 8:40 a.m., officials said.

The boat left Catalina Island, bound for Redondo Beach, around 8 p.m. Sunday with a man and two women on board, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

Around 9 p.m., they called 911 to report that the boat's engine died and they had no type of emergency signaling on board. The group's cell phone also died during the call.

The USCG, Long Beach Fire Department, Los Angeles County Lifeguards  and two helicopters conducted a search overnight.

"During the searches we had been broadcasting . . . a good Samaritan heard those broadcasts and saw a vessel that matched the description, called it in and in fact, we verified that the vessel we had been looking for is the vessel with all three people on board and safe," Capt. Jennifer Williams said.

The boaters were taken to a local hospital for a medical examination.

The boat was being towed to Cabrillo Harbor for repairs.