Three dead after boat capsizes near San Diego

At least three people died and seven others, including two children, were missing after a small boat capsized off the California coast in a suspected migrant smuggling attempt, U.S. officials have stated.

Four survivors rescued after a "panga"-style open fishing vessel washed ashore near Torrey Pines State Beach were transported to hospitals. Two other individuals found on a nearby beach were detained by authorities, according to U.S. Coast Guard officials.

The two taken into custody were suspected to be smugglers, Coast Guard spokesperson Hunter Schnabel told Reuters.

Earlier Coast Guard accounts put the number of people missing from the overturned craft at nine, but Schnabel said the tally of those unaccounted for was revised to seven after confirmation that two individuals had been detained.

A Coast Guard cutter, an emergency response boat and a helicopter were involved in an ongoing search for the missing, among whom were two children, another Coast Guard spokesperson, Chief Petty Officer Levi Read, said.