Squall capsizes boat on California's Lake Tahoe, leaving six dead

SACRAMENTO, the United States -- A sudden squall overturned a pleasure craft on California's Lake Tahoe on Saturday afternoon, killing six adults, injuring two, and leaving two others missing, the US Coast Guard and local authorities said.

The 27-foot (8 meters) gold-hulled Chris Craft rolled over near D. L. Bliss State Park at roughly 3 pm local time (2200 GMT) with 10 people aboard, according to Coast Guard District 11.

The El Dorado County Sheriff's Office began receiving 911 calls shortly before 5 pm, and rescue teams from El Dorado County, California State Parks, and South Lake Tahoe Police recovered six bodies while ferrying two survivors to the hospital.

The weather shifted in minutes. Lake Tahoe weather station measured winds near 30 knots (about 56 kilometers per hour) and steep swells of 1.8 to 2.4 meters at the time the boat capsized, the Coast Guard said.

CBS Sacramento's meteorologists later recorded gusts of 64 to 72 kilometers per hour as the fast-moving storm cell pushed south across the lake, dropping temperatures and visibility.

More than a dozen divers, a helicopter, and a Coast Guard aircraft combed the glacier-fed waters until nightfall and will resume the search at first light Sunday.

Authorities have withheld the victims' names pending notification of relatives. Officials urged boaters who captured video of the storm to share footage with investigators.

The Coast Guard is investigating whether loading, life jacket use, or mechanical issues compounded the storm's force. Search teams plan to deploy side scan sonar on Sunday in waters that plunge to 460 meters just offshore.

Lake Tahoe, one of North America's deepest alpine lakes, can generate ocean-like conditions when sudden mountain squalls strike, officials warned.