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Windsurfer Rescued From Bay After Night In The Water

The woman was rescued just north of the San Mateo Bridge.

A search lasting more than 10 hours ended this morning after the U.S. Coast Guard rescued a Los Altos woman who disappeared after windsurfing near Coyote Point in the San Francisco Bay on Monday evening, a petty officer said.

A helicopter lowered a rescue swimmer into waters close to the center span just north of the San Mateo Bridge after the Coast Guard found 62-year-old Cathy Caton in stable condition just after 6 a.m., Petty Officer Emily Wilhite said.

Caton, who is an expert windsurfer with more than 20 years of experience, had launched from a public beach in Foster City, on the northwest side of the San Mateo Bridge, near 3rd Ave Kite, a kiteboard school, said Doug Samp, senior chief of U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Francisco. Her husband had stayed on shore, awaiting her return by 5:30 p.m. After an hour he became concerned and called 911.

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The San Mateo-Foster City Fire Department responded, followed a half hour later by the Coast Guard with a helicopter and boat. Other jurisdictions joined the search, but then discountinued after dark, except Alameda County and the San Francisco Fire airport division.

Samp said the Coast Guard had been continuously searching overnight, and expanded the search parameters to follow the drift of the current, going from south of the San Mateo Bridge, north to Hunters Point in San Francisco, across the bay to Oakland International Airport and south down the shoreline.

New crews were ready to go at first light, in multiple jurisdictions, and do shoreline searches on both sides of the bay, Samp said.

Despite Caton's experience, her husband told the Coast Guard he was nervous she might be weak because she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment, Wilhite said.

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It is unclear if Caton suffered any injuries, but the Coast Guard said she is in stable condition and would be taken to the hospital for further evaluation.

-Bay City News and Los Altos Patch editor Lisa Chung contributed to this report

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