Passengers jump ship after crash at Salinas River State Beach

Waves rocked a 42-foot boat, Sunday, minutes after it crashed onto shore at Salinas River State Beach.
“We were out a good ways. Probably two miles or so,” said Dennis Laster, a passenger on the boat.

Laster, and seven other passengers, including a child, were left stranded out at sea for an hour. Laster
said the group planned to spend the day fishing, but when the boat ran out of gas, he knew they were in trouble. “Right after that the second motor shut down. It was pretty scary for the women and the little kid. I was more scared for them,” said Laster.

The Coast Guard said they received a call from the boat around noon. In an attempt to prevent the boat from going into the surf zone, the anchor was dropped, but the swells snapped the line. By the time help arrived, the boat was nearly to shore. The group said they were left with one option: to jump ship. “I knew we were going to have to jump out at some point. We were just trying to get as close to the beach as we could before we did,” said Laster.

Laster said he and his friends dock their boat in Moss Landing, but it could be some time until it makes it back out to the open ocean. The group is still waiting to hear what damage was done. They predict towing the boat back to their dock could cost them thousands.

Luckily, no one was hurt. Regardless, passengers said they took something away from the situation. “Always have gas,” said Laster.

The boat was towed back to its dock, early Sunday night.