Car Falls Off Miami Area Ferry; 2 Women Inside

MIAMI BEACH, FL — A car fell off the Fisher Island Ferry late Tuesday afternoon and divers searching the waters off Government Cut hours later found the submerged vehicle with two women inside, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

"Dive crews with @MiamiDadeFire located the vehicle with two unresponsive females inside and are working other local response crews to recover the people and car," the Coast Guard said at 10:15 p.m. Tuesday night.

A representative of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue told Patch the initial call came into the U.S. Coast Guard shortly after 5 p.m.

Petty Officer Jonathan Lally with the Coast Guard in Miami said the initial report was for a car in the water. But he said officials did not immediately know if anyone was inside the vehicle. The Coast Guard Miami Beach responded along with Miami-Dade Fire Rescue.

The ferry connects Fisher Island to the mainland. The island is only accessible by yacht or private 24-hour passenger vehicle ferry service, which leaves from Terminal Island Road off MacArthur Causeway.

Fisher Island is home to some of the most exclusive real estate in the Miami area and is a favorite spot for celebrities.

In a March 2019 article, Bloomberg described Fisher Island as America's richest zip code with an average income of $2.2 million.

A representative of Fisher Island Public Safety, which is the security office for the island, declined to release any information on the incident.