Missing boat near Rancho Palos Verdes found; no injuries

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. (KABC) -- A short trip from Catalina Island back to the mainland turned into an all-night ordeal for three people after their boat ran out of fuel and they ended up stranded at sea. Officials said there were no injuries.

The small boat was found disabled by a Good Samaritan just after 8:30 a.m. The U.S. Coast Guard brought the three people to shore Monday morning to San Pedro after 14 hours of drifting at sea.

"I'm really tired. We've been up all night," boater Kelly Kavalunes said.

The boat was last seen leaving from Avalon Harbor around 8 p.m. Sunday with Jason Wischmann, Kavalunes and another female passenger on board. Wischmann's boat ran out of fuel two hours after leaving Catalina Island.

The U.S. Coast Guard says Wischmann called 911 after 10 p.m., saying the boat was disabled and that they did not have flares and the radio wasn't working. The call was cut off because the cellphone battery was low, Wischmann said.

The Coast Guard immediately launched a search. The last cellphone position was 10 miles northeast of Catalina Island. Meanwhile, the three tried to flag down other boaters.

"We tried to stand up on the bow of the boat and wave our life jackets at people and scream and holler and do all that stuff and it wasn't working," Wischmann said.

Luckily, a Good Samaritan on a yacht leaving Avalon "saw what he thought could match the description and confirmed that he found the boat safe with all three people on board safe," said Capt. Jennifer Williams with the U.S. Coast Guard.

Wischmann said although they had food, water, life jackets and a blanket, he wished he was prepared with flares or a horn.

"Once we saw them actually turn towards us, it was a really nice feeling," Wischmann said.