AVALON, Calif. (AP) — A boat that may have been hit by a wave capsized off the backside of Santa Catalina Island on Saturday, killing three people, authorities said.

Four survivors were rescued after the 15-foot skiff overturned off of Salta Verde Point.

Three were in critical condition when they were taken to hospitals, and there was no immediate word on the condition of the fourth, Los Angeles County fire dispatchers said.

Another boat reported the capsizing at around 9:30 a.m., and pulled four people from the water, but two seemed unresponsive, Sondra-Kay Kneen of the U.S. Coast Guard said

A Coast Guard helicopter pulled another person from some rocks, lifeguards pulled one from the water and another was found on a beach, Kneen said.

"The waves in the area were reported to be between 4 and 6 feet, and that could have overturned the skiff," she said.