A San Francisco Bar Pilot and the captain of a Bar Pilot vessel assisted in the rescue of two people Saturday night located clinging to an overturned sailboat.
A MAYDAY was received by the pilot boat California about 9 p.m. Saturday night while it was standing station 11 miles west of the Golden Gate. The rescue occurred near the San Francisco Bar Channel where two people were found clinging to the keel of their overturned sailboat in rough conditions. With the wind gusting to 35 knots and seas running 12 feet high, pilot Dave Weiss and boat Captain Mike Sposeto responded to the scene in the Pilot Vessel California. Weiss and Sposeto both suffered minor injuries while hoisting one victim to safety. The U.S. Coast Guard rescued the other member of the sailboat crew.
“I want to commend Captain Weiss and Mr. Sposeto for their quick actions which saved a life on Saturday night,” said Captain Peter McIsaac, President of the San Francisco Bar Pilots. “We work in some of the most challenging maritime conditions in the world and on these waters you have to be ready to expect almost anything.”
The Pilot Vessel California brought one victim to the San Francisco waterfront where an ambulance was standing by.
Established under state law in 1850, the San Francisco Bar Pilots have been helping to conduct shipping traffic safely through Northern California for more than 150 years.
Media Contact: Charlie Goodyear, 415-637-8671