A 43-foot boat sank offshore of Bolsa Chica State Beach near the wetlands entrance Thursday evening, prompting State Parks to close a portion of the shore with concern of an oil leak as the US Coast Guard investigates.
The vessel was just 1,000-feet offshore when it started to take on water, State Parks Superintendent Kevin Pearsall said.
Two people were aboard when lifeguards from various agencies responded, attempting to tow the boat to the nearby Huntington Harbour. But within just a few minutes, the boat was underwater, Pearsall said.
Lifeguards were able to get the two people onto rescue watercrafts and bring them to shore safely.
The incident happened during the State Parks’ junior lifeguard banquet, with several guards there for the event responding, Pearsall said.
Pearsall said there was a sheen on the ocean’s surface and it was being monitored, with agencies collaborating with the Department of Fish and Wildlife to get a boom into the water to try and control any oil leak, as was done during the October 2021 oil spill from a pipeline that shut down beaches for weeks.
Authorities are trying to stop any oil from getting into wetlands, he said.
US Coast Guard petty officer Richard Brahm said there was about 300 gallons of fuel on board suspected of causing the leak.
“You can smell it on the water and it’s pretty close to shore,” he said, but noted it is expected to break up quickly.
Efforts will be made to recover the boat from the ocean, officials said, maybe by Saturday.
“We’re hoping to expedite it before the storm comes,” Pearsall said.
The section of beach at south Bolsa Chica between towers 16 to 18 will remain closed until cleared of any potential oil spill impacts, he said.
Huntington City Beach officials closed ocean access from Beach Boulevard to Seapoint Avenue for a short period while the Coast Guard investigated reports of an oil sheen, but the area was reopened at noon, said city spokesperson Jennifer Carey.
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