16 rescued off Mexico’s Baja coast after mayday call

Eleven people are still missing (AP)

Sixteen people have been rescued from the Pacific Ocean off Mexico’s Baja California coast after the US coast guard responded to a mayday call reporting that a boat was sinking.

Another 11 people are believed to be missing.

The people rescued were Mexican nationals, according to the Mexican consulate. But the boat’s origin, its destination and what it was doing are not clear.

The vessel went down in an area frequented by smugglers transporting migrants to the US. It is also popular with fishing and leisure boats.

One survivor is being treated for a suspected shark bite and two people are in a critical condition, authorities said.

A rescue helicopter reached the site about two hours after someone on the boat transmitted a mayday call at about 1am to say it was sinking, said Coast Guard Lt Santiago Tamburini.

It took about 90 minutes for the crew, which included a rescue swimmer, to pull the 16 people from the water, Lt Tamburini said.

“People were holding onto each other, to debris, just treading and trying to stay above water before being rescued,” he said.

The boat went down about 140 miles west of Ensenada, Mexico.

The search for more survivors across some 950 square nautical miles is to continue, officials said.