Coast Guard and cruise line save 12 passengers after boat sinks near Dominican Republic

SANTO DOMINGO (AP) — A boat carrying 12 passengers sank north of the Dominican Republic during inclement weather, and all have been rescued, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Six of the passengers who were aboard a raft were rescued Wednesday by a Carnival Cruise Line ship in the area, and six others who were found clinging to debris from the sunken ship were saved by the Coast Guard, officials said.

The incident occurred about 30 miles (48 kilometers) north of Puerto Plata. A high surf advisory was in effect.

All 12 passengers were taken to emergency medical services in Puerto Plata via helicopter and are in good health, the Coast Guard said.

John McCarthy

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John F. McCarthy is a veteran journalist in the Caribbean, writing from the "Decision Space" where survival meets the surreal. His reporting steel was tempered by a lineage of legendary editors and broadcasters, including Ed Wynn Brant (The Bomb), Owen Eschenroder (Ann Arbor News), Lynelle Emanuel (BVI Beacon), and Charles Thanas (WSVI-TV). Alongside longtime colleague Kenneth C. "Casey" Clark, McCarthy has navigated the front lines of the territory’s history—from the 1997 volcanic "snow" to every major hurricane since Hugo. Known for leaning out of doorless helicopters to capture the "money shot," McCarthy now edits the V.I. Free Press, providing the essential link between the island's colonial past and its SpaceX future.