RedactedNarrative: On Thursday September 10, 2020 at approximately 1500, I received a phone call from the Sierra County Regional Dispatch Center (SCRDA) about a boat that was sinking in the middle of the lake, within the exterior boundaries of Elephant Butte Lake State Park (EBLSP). I was securing an archaeological site with the loader at Rattlesnake Beach at the time of the call and spotted the boat across the lake at Hayner's Mound.  It was a yellow and white boat as described by the SCRDA public safety telecommunicator. 
  
  I called EBLSP Maintenance Manager to switch vehicles, I then headed to my patrol unit, and from there to Marina del Sur (MDS) to get a patrol boat. I meet with EBLSP Ranger Cadet at MDS. We could see the sinking vessel with the stern a quarter of the way in the water, with the bow at about a 45-degree angle. As we continued to the scene, we noticed three (3) people in the water. I notified SCRDA that we had arrived on scene and that there were three people in the water.
  
  I placed my patrol vessel with my portside toward the individuals, shut off my engine, and we pulled the 3 individuals into to our patrol vessel. The 3 individuals were wearing their life jackets. We took the people to the nearest shore which was Hayner's Mound. 
  
  We tied up to their boat and took it to Hayner's Mound. We decided to try to tow the boat to the southern side of Rattlesnake Island, so the visitors could load their boat. We took the visitors to the MDS parking lot and met them at Rattlesnake Island. After a while, they were assisted by another park visitor in getting their vehicle and boat out. I looked at the boat to see where the water had entered the boat. I did not find any place where the water may have entered the boat. The plug was installed at the time of the incident. The cause could have been the rubber seal at the stern of the boat on the hull where the inboard/outboard engine is located.
  