Multiple agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard, rescued 32 people from a 63-foot boat when it began to take on water near Miami Beach on Saturday evening.
The cause of the sinking is still under investigation, and the Coast Guard said everyone survived.
Only afloat for 20 minutes before taking on water
CBS News Miami spoke with a woman who escaped the boat as it sank off the coast of Star Island.
“When I was on the phone with the 911 operator, she was like, ‘Where are you?'” Kaitlyn said. “And I was like, ‘I’m in the ocean.'”
She asked CBS News Miami to refer to her only by her first name.
That was the first 911 call Kaitlyn said she ever made. She said she was only on the boat for 20 minutes before it started sinking.
“Everyone went to the top of the boat, and then we realized half the boat was in the water,” Kaitlyn said.
She said she was heading to a party at the Palm Tree Club, but she ended up being one of dozens of people who were rescued from the boat.
Kaitlyn told CBS News Miami she can’t swim and had trouble finding a life vest. She also said some people found the sinking funny.
“During the time before everyone got off the boat, it was scary seeing other people driving around, not helping and just recording it,” Kaitlyn said.
She told CBS News Miami this was a learning experience.
“I probably should have known how to swim before ever getting on a boat,” Kaitlyn said.
One USCG captain brought nearly two dozen to safety
USGC Cpt. Yasmany Linares told CBS News Miami he didn’t hesitate to help. He saw the sinking while out on the water.
“I just told [my first mate], ‘Okay Camilla: Today, we’re not going to be doing pictures and photos. We’re going to be doing a mission rescue,'” Linares said.
The Coast Guard said 32 people were rescued from that sinking boat.
Linares said he helped get 23 of them to shore, and he did what he’d expect from other boaters if he was sinking into the bay.
“If that boat flips, all these people can be trapped under the boat and that’s a different story,” Linares said.
