The vessel sank stern first and capsized due to the weight of the twin engines, passengers, and flooding below decks in the same area of the vessel.

On 12/31/2012, vessel FL 0147LK was at anchor 5 miles off of Long Key Monroe County.  Onboard was Owner/operator and 2 other passengers fishing. While at anchor, the vessel was taking water over the sides due to the rough sea state.  At some point the captain noticed that the vessel was sitting lower in the water than it had when they first anchored up.  The captain also noticed that bilge pump never came on while at anchor.  The Captain turned on the bilge manually but the pump wasn't coming on. As the vessel started filling up with more water, the Captain had one his passengers hoist the anchor while trying to start the engines; the engines were reportedly mostly under water at this point.  All three passengers put PFD's on and one of the passengers called for help with a good geographical position and GPS coordinates.

All three passengers were rescued without injury. - During my interview with the Captain, he said he was having problems with the bilge pump the day before but that the pump was working at the dock and on the way out to the reef that day.

An inspection of the vessels hoses and clamps revealed nothing faulty.  The electronics/vessel batteries were (as expected) inoperable. - Damage from the T-top was more than likely due to the salvage efforts and rough seas.
LAYTON                        