Book Description

At approximately 1000 on February 16, 1983, the small passenger vessel SAN MATEO capsized approximately 300 yards west of the Morro Bay Harbor entrance, tossing all thirty-two (32) persons on board into the Pacific Ocean. All persons were rescued within 20 minutes by the Morro Bay Harbor Patrol and the Coast Guard. A few of the twenty-three (23) children on board sustained minor injuries. Two of the seven adults sustained serious injuries. The surf conditions caused the vessel to break up after it capsized, making it a total loss. This report contains the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation report and the Action taken by the Commandant to determine the proximate cause of the casualty and the recommendations to prevent recurrence.