Crew member killed off Piedras Blancas when mast breaks on fishing boat

One crew member of a San Pedro-based fishing boat was killed and another injured late Wednesday evening when the mast on their vessel broke during an excursion north of Piedras Blancas.

The U.S. Coast Guard, which spent all of Thursday investigating the incident, has not identified the deceased person pending notification of family. The injured crewman was last reported to be in stable condition, according to a news release.

The commercial fishing boat Pamela Rose is based out of Long Beach, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

At about 12 a.m. Thursday, the Coast Guard received a report from a Good Samaritan who came across the 54-foot Pamela Rose about eight nautical miles north of Point Piedras Blancas and reported the incident.

A MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from the Coast Guard Air Station in San Francisco was dispatched to the scene and airlifted the injured crewmember, identified only as a 62-year-old man, to Twin Cities Community Hospital in Templeton.

The Coast Guard Station in Morro Bay also dispatched a 47-foot motor lifeboat crew to tow the vessel back to the Morro Bay Harbor. A Morro Bay Harbor Patrol spokeswoman said the boat had been safely towed to the harbor as of 5 p.m.

The cause of the incident is under investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment in Santa Barbara.

This story was originally published October 19, 2017 at 6:58 PM with the headline "Crew member killed off Piedras Blancas when mast breaks on fishing boat."