San Francisco, 1967 — The 125-foot Coast Guard cutter Alert and good Samaritan vessels fight a losing battle against a fire raging aboard the tuna seiner Mondego.
None of the 12-man crew was injured, but the boat was a total loss after it was beached on Point Loma.
This dramatic photo of the blaze showed Coast Guard members fighting the fire while some of the Mondego crew were still on the deck of the burning boat.
According to the crew, the fire started in the stacks when they were bound for fishing grounds off Baja, Calif.
The boat was owned by Arnold A. Vidal and skippered by Jose Silva, both from San Diego.
Another recent casualty in the local fleet was the 85-foot bait boat Western Pride, which dragged her anchor and went ashore at San Quintin Bay about 170 miles south of San Diego. That vessel was also a total loss.
