Responders reported two paddle boarders struggling in a strong current off Harbor Island near the Sheraton Hotels, with Coast Guard en route nearby. Coast Guard Sector San Diego then issued a Pan Pan for a reported vessel SOS roughly 45 nautical miles west/northwest of San Diego, asking vessels to assist if possible. A separate 39-foot trawler lost all power in the Mission Bay Channel with one person aboard, prompting a response unit.
San Diego Lifeguards broadcast a sailing mayday on Channel 16, asked for the vessel location, and the call appeared active. Separately a chaotic unidentified transmission repeatedly pleaded "stay up," "help me out" and "grab me" and did not identify a vessel or status. Those raw urgent calls made this week's VHF traffic unusually tense.
A vessel reported that it was on the ground just outside the jetties near 41 Houston and that crew had produced a defibrillator as the vessel was cleared to proceed to its usual dock. The Coast Guard issued a Pan Pan after a flare sighting off Silver Strand near San Diego Bay and it remained active in the broadcast with all vessels asked to keep a sharp lookout and assist.
Responders reported a barge and its towed vessel were on fire in San Diego Bay and they ordered nearby craft to stand clear while Harbor Police worked to bring the tow to dock.
Two separate Pan Pan EPIRB alerts were broadcast by USCG Sector San Diego near Del Mar Beach Cove and the Tijuana River. Both alerts asked all vessels to keep a sharp lookout and assist if possible. Separately lifeguards were dispatched to Vessel Orion and radio checked whether an AED was available onboard as responders prepared to proceed.
On April 15th, Coast Guard Sector San Diego broadcast an active Pan Pan for an EPIRB alert three miles off La Jolla. That same week, a skipper at Dana Landing made one of the more unusual calls we've logged: his truck and trailer went into the water at the boat ramp and was impounded, leaving his boat stranded at the dock.
A vessel radioed a semi-emergency in Glorietta Bay after reporting that a nearby boat had flipped and struck them in the anchorage just south of the golf course. The caller said Harbor Police were on patrol and asked for assistance and the transmission did not confirm whether a Pan Pan or Mayday was declared or whether the situation was later resolved. The report highlighted hazards at crowded anchorages and featured in this week's VesselAware digest.
Compared with last week’s more incident-driven traffic, this week sounded quieter on the water, with total transmissions easing to 357 from 402 and routine hails continuing to make up most of the activity. Sécurité calls also fell to 51 from 100, and the overall mix showed less urgent radio traffic than the week before, without the repeated Pan Pan-style urgency that stood out in prior weeks.
It was a week of repeated person-in-the-water incidents in San Diego Bay, with radio traffic capturing multiple rescues and urgent Coast Guard alerts. On Sunday, radio traffic reported an overturned jet ski near buoy 20 with one person still aboard and another already rescued by a nearby sailboat, and on Tuesday the Coast Guard issued a Pan-Pan for a person in the water near the Coronado Bridge. Then on Saturday, a vessel near the Star of India reported it had picked up someone who fell into the bay and was two minutes out to transfer them.
Last week in San Diego waters, Coast Guard Sector San Diego issued multiple urgent broadcasts reporting a person in the water near the Coronado Bridge, a vessel aground near the south end of Scripps Pier, and an unidentified distress transmission from an unknown position.
It was a quiet week on the air. We tallied 346 transmissions: 117 Sécurité; 9 Pan Pans; and no Maydays.
Highlights were Sector San Diego traffic—Imperial Beach person-in-the-water and adrift-vessel Pan Pans, repeated Oceanside wave advisories and cutter sécurités, plus Disney Wonder diving warnings and a gray-whale chatter in the bay.
It was a quiet week on the air. 300 transmissions: 72 Sécurité; 6 Pan Pan calls; no Maydays.
On March 1 2026 United States Coast Guard Sector San Diego issued multiple Pan Pan broadcasts at 0208 UTC reporting a distress call of unknown position and unknown nature and requesting all vessels to keep a sharp lookout and render assistance.
A U.S. warship warned a nearby boat operating between Pier 11 and 12 to recall its swimmer or face defensive action in the restricted area. On February 16, 2026 the U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Diego issued a Pan Pan at 1038 local for two people reported in the water near the International Line. Mission Bay lifeguards separately reported a vessel about 10 feet from the rocks that had not yet struck them.
Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles issued an urgent Pan-Pan after receiving a Channel 16 distress call from the vessel Sundancer, which reportedly had been sinking with no position provided, and asked mariners to keep watch and report any sightings. Near San Diego, a Mayday reported a vessel fire just north of Shelter Island by the mooring buoys, drawing responders into an active evacuation. As crews managed the fire, the vessel Serrata requested immediate Harbor Police assistance for an onboard threat near America’s Cup Harbor, forcing responders to juggle a safety incident alongside the ongoing rescue.
U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Diego broadcasted two urgent safety alerts after a 16-foot sailboat had capsized in the surf near Silver Strand and a separate report had placed a person in the water near the east side of San Diego Pier. In another incident, the Coast Guard coordinated with a caller in the main channel who reported a tipped-over jet ski and a rider struggling to reboard, triggering a request for immediate assistance.
Coast Guard Sector San Diego issued multiple safety broadcasts - first asking mariners to watch for a reported yellow kayak, then alerting all stations to multiple flares reported about 30 miles west of Point Loma. A separate warning ordered all craft near China Point and San Clemente Island to move 1,000 meters east to avoid an active live-fire range.
Coast Guard Sector San Diego broadcast a Mayday for a vessel in distress about 30 nautical miles northwest of Channel 10, calling for immediate assistance. Around the same time, another vessel reported handling a serious medical emergency, while separate traffic flagged a fishing vessel lost near Imperial Gate.
A boater warned that a vessel unknowingly ran right over a newborn whale, with drones overhead and the mother nearby—an alarming reminder of how quickly wildlife encounters can turn dangerous. In a separate call, the tug Wendy Joe reported towing a “dead ship” into San Diego between 3–4 a.m. Two very different situations, but the same takeaway: on the water, awareness and communication are everything.
Responders closed in on a reported distress scene after a white skiff was identified approaching the bow of a sailboat linked to the earlier alert. A separate call confirmed a vessel had become disabled in the channel, prompting an immediate check for distress conditions.
A sailboat has bottomed out on its keel off the Shelter Island point nearest Point Loma and the skipper has asked nearby boaters for help because deeper-draft vessels have stayed clear. Harbor Police also moved to assist a separate vessel that has sat stuck on a jetty without power after the operator reported he had no way to contact vessel assist.