Ferry diverts from Alcatraz trip to rescue passengers from sinking boat

A video shows an Alcatraz Island ferry rescuing 10 people from a sinking boat Thursday night in San Francisco Bay.

A 31-foot pleasure boat radioed a mayday about 8:45 p.m. after striking a rock near Alcatraz, reported the U.S. Coast Guard. An urgent Coast Guard broadcast to other vessels in the area alerted a nearby ferry taking tourists back and forth to the former prison.

The ferry responded and took 10 people off the boat, which sank a short time later in 100 feet of water, the Coast Guard said.

Simon Houde, a tourist from Montreal, captured video of the rescue from the ferry and posted it to his Facebook page.

The video shows the ferry approaching the boat, which is low in the water, with the passengers all on deck in lifejackets. Someone on the boat tries to throw a line to the ferry, finally succeeding, and the boat’s pulled close to the ferry so the passengers can be taken off.

Tourists cheer and clap as the ferry pulls away from the now-empty boat, which disappears into the darkness.

This story was originally published August 4, 2017 at 1:30 PM with the headline "Ferry diverts from Alcatraz trip to rescue passengers from sinking boat."