The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search to find 11 people estimated missing after a boat carrying 27 people capsized Friday in the Pacific Ocean.
The search was halted Sunday evening after the Coast Guard, alongside Mexican authorities and the U.S. Navy, searched more than 2,441 square miles for a combined 89 hours, the Coast Guard said.
"We are grateful for the exceptional coordination and assistance from Mexico and the U.S. Navy throughout this challenging operation," said Capt. Joseph Meuse, chief of staff, Coast Guard Southwest District said in the statement Monday.
"Suspending a search is never easy, and this was an exceptionally dynamic case, far offshore, in rough weather. We can say with confidence that human traffickers have zero regard for human life and routinely put the lives of illegal aliens and the lives of rescue crews at risk."
Aircraft and vessels spent the weekend searching for the missing passengers in waters about 140 miles west of Ensenada, Mexico, after the U.S. Coast Guard received multiple distress calls around 1 a.m. Friday, reporting a vessel taking on water.
Helicopter crews arrived about an hour later and found passengers floating amid debris. It took around 90 minutes to pull 16 people from the water.
Three of the 16 survivors pulled from the water were treated for injuries consistent with shark bites, Petty Officer Charlie Valor told The New York Times on Sunday.
"People were holding onto each other, to debris, just treading and trying to stay above water before being rescued," Lt. Santiago Tamburini told CBC over the weekend.
All 16 survivors are Mexican nationals, the Mexican consulate in San Diego told the Associated Press. The survivors were taken to a Coast Guard base in San Diego and then to local hospitals, where two are in critical condition, CBC reported.
The boat's point of departure and destination remain unclear, as does the purpose of the voyage. The Coast Guard has described the vessel as following a route normally used in illegal maritime smuggling operations, and Meuse said in Monday's statement that human traffickers "routinely put the lives" of people and rescue crews at risk.
"Boats in that area can be for fishing, leisure or personal recreation. We just don't know what they were doing out there. We all know it's a suspected smuggling route," Tamburini said.
Capt. Robert Tucker said in a statement that the case "highlights the extreme dangers of taking to the sea."
"The vessel had a large number of people onboard and was following a route normally used in illegal maritime smuggling operations. Offshore conditions are unforgivable and can quickly result in death," he added.
On Sunday, the agency confirmed that Homeland Security Investigations will lead an inquiry into the incident. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is interviewing the survivors, the Coast Guard said.
This article originally appeared on Yahoo News at https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/article/coast-guard-suspends-search-for-11-missing-after-boat-capsizes-off-mexico-with-survivors-suffering-suspected-shark-bites-151558060.html