At least four people are missing after a severe storm capsized sailboats Saturday afternoon during a regatta in Mobile Bay, Alabama, Coast Guard spokesman Carlos Vega said.
Five people were initially reported missing, but one of them has since been been rescued, the Coast Guard said.
More than 100 sailboats took part in the Dauphin Island Race and as many as 50 people in all were rescued from the water, the Coast Guard said.
Jeff Carter, deputy director of Mobile County Emergency Management, said his department is reporting that one person may have died. Besides overturned sailboats, one vessel hit a bridge, he said.
Search and rescue efforts are ongoing, the Coast Guard said.
Coast Guard Sector Mobile received a report at approximately 4:30 p.m. that a sailing regatta in Mobile Bay had been struck by severe weather, causing several vessels to capsize and leaving a number of people in the water.
The Coast Guard and other agencies were on the scene Saturday night, Vega said.
The Fairhope Yacht Club sponsors the Dauphin Island Race, according to the club website. The club says this is the 57th year for the event.
