Source: cnn.com

BOYNTON BEACH, Florida (AP) -- A distress call from nine people aboard a boat sinking in Atlantic Ocean might have been a swindle, the Coast Guard said Monday.

"There are some elements that just don't add up," Lt. Cmdr. Chris O'Neil said. "If you listen to that tape, the voice of that person doesn't sound like he's particularly stressed."

The Coast Guard began incisive the coastal waters after receiving the radio distress call late Sunday from a man who said their 33-foot motor boat called Blue Sheep was sinking.

"My lights are flickering on my radio. I'm taking on water. What do you want me to do?" the man calmly asked, according to a recording of the call released Monday afternoon.

"The whole back of the boat is submerged," the man said. "We have nine people on board. Everybody's in life jackets."

After in receipt of the call at about 10:50 p.m. Sunday, the Coast Guard and local agencies sent three helicopters, a C-130 airplane and several boats on the look for along a 50-mile stretch from St. Lucie County to Boynton Beach.

Waves were 3 to 4 feet Sunday night in the area where the boat supposedly sank, about 50 miles north of Miami. Conditions were much the same Monday but were predictable to deteriorate as Tropical Storm Alberto move toward Florida from the west.