Crews to continue search for survivors after boats capsize

A U.S. Coast Guard boat, top right, patrols Mobile Bay as other water craft head head south from Dauphin Island, Ala., Sunday, April 26, 2015. Coast Guard crews are searching for five people missing in the water after a powerful storm capsized several sailboats participating in a regatta near Mobile Bay. (AP Photo/G.M. Andrews) A U.S. Coast Guard boat, top right, patrols Mobile Bay as other water craft head head south from Dauphin Island, Ala., Sunday, April 26, 2015. Coast Guard crews are searching for five people missing in the water after a powerful storm capsized several sailboats participating in a regatta near Mobile Bay. (AP Photo/G.M. Andrews)

By Associated Press April 27, 2015 3 min read

DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. (AP) – Crews planned to continue searching for any survivors after a powerful weekend storm capsized several sailboats in a regatta near Mobile Bay, a Coast Guard spokesman said before dawn Monday.

One body was discovered after Saturday’s storm and another Sunday morning, said Major Steve Thompson, director of the Alabama Department of Public Safety’s Marine Patrol Division.

Authorities said crews used boats and planes to search the Alabama waters, including areas near Dauphin Island where anxious family members have gathered at a Coast Guard station awaiting updates. Red Cross volunteers and an ambulance also were at the site.

Names of the missing and deceased were not immediately released Sunday. One person was rescued Saturday evening.

“We’re going to keep searching throughout the morning,” Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Carlos Vega said before dawn broke Monday morning on the Alabama coast.