Coronado

Passing boaters rescued four people Saturday after their anchored motor boat caught fire in San Diego Bay south of the Coronado Cays.

San Diego Harbor Police said the 15-foot Paradise, owned by Doug Steimle of Coronado, had been refueled minutes before it was engulfed in flames at about 3:50 p.m. Investigators suspect the fire began when the engine backfired, igniting gas fumes in the bilge.

The Coronado Police Department’s patrol boat extinguished the fire within minutes after being called to the scene. Authorities said the boat was a total loss. It was impounded by the Harbor Police.

Steimle and three sons who were with him were picked up by passing boaters and put ashore at Coronado Cays, police said.