4 survivors of suspected smuggling vessel are found; search continues for the others.

A lifeguard gathers debris, including life jackets and gas cans, as authorities work to secure the scene where a suspected smuggling panga overturned in the Del Mar surf early Monday morning. K.C. Alfred - The San Diego Union-Tribune.

By KAREN KUCHER | THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE

A search was underway Monday after a suspected smuggling boat capsized off Del Mar in San Diego County, killing three people.

Early reports indicated nine people were missing from the boat, while four survivors were located.

"Potentially nine more individuals are unaccounted for," Coast Guard spokesperson Adam Stanton said. "That nine number doesn't mean they are in the water. They could have made it to shore."

The overturned boat was discovered just north of Torrey Pines State Beach about 6:30 a.m.

A survivor who was interviewed told first responders that nine people were missing, including one or two children, Coast Guard spokesperson Hunter Schnabel said.

Personnel from several agencies were involved in the search, including Coast Guard and San Diego Fire-Rescue Department helicopters, a 45-foot Coast Guard response boat, and lifeguards in rescue boats and personal watercraft. Some people were combing the beach on foot.

"There are quite a few agencies involved currently," Schnabel said.

Encinitas Deputy Fire Chief Jorge Sanchez told  OnScene.TV that rescuers found people on the beach when they first arrived. He said four people were taken to hospitals, and it was unknown if any other victims were in the water.

Sheriff's Lt. Nick Backouris said the sheriffs department will be handling the death investigations.

He said initial reports were that the vessel was a 12-foot panga, but he said he thought the boat might have been a little larger, maybe 20 feet long, based on photos he saw from the scene. "It is an old, beat-up boat," he said.

Video shot by OnScene.TV showed the boat upright in the water, bobbing in the waves near the shore.