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Border Patrol investigating after boat with 11 passengers washes up in Huntington Beach

A small boat is seen at night on a sandy beach.
A boat washed ashore Monday night in Huntington Beach.
(James Trager)
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U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers are investigating an incident in Orange County in which a boat carrying 11 people washed ashore.

The incident took place in Huntington Beach around 9:30 p.m. Monday near the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and 14th Street, said Jennifer Carey, public affairs manager for the city.

Responders with the Huntington Beach Fire Department were called to the scene to check the status of the passengers, Carey said Tuesday. No injuries were reported.

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Such reports are not uncommon in Orange County. Last year, a panga boat carrying 14 passengers from Mexico was intercepted at Laguna Beach’s Agate Street Beach on May 18. A similar sighting was reported in Newport Beach three days earlier, and a third incident was recorded on May 2.

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol is overseeing the investigation into Monday’s incident. It was still unclear Tuesday whether anyone was detained at the scene and where the vessel — which appears to be an unmarked motorboat — was taken.

Representatives of the agency did not respond Tuesday to requests for more information.

The mother of a girl at Pepper Tree Elementary School said her daughter, who is Black, was given drawings with the messages, “You’re my favorite monkey” and “To my favorite cotton picker.”

Feb. 21, 2023

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