( CNN ) -- A Coast Guardsman died Sunday after a `` suspicious '' boat rammed his small vessel off the coast of Southern California , an official said . Chief Petty Officer Terrell Horne was one of two Coast Guard members thrown off their cutter 's small boat when the suspect 's panga-style vessel `` suddenly increased speed and maneuvered directly '' at them , then struck the boat , said Capt . James Jenkins . Having a traumatic head injury , Horne was pronounced dead by emergency medical personnel upon his arrival on shore at Port Hueneme . `` Chief Petty Officer Horne was an outstanding Coast Guard member , '' Jenkins said . `` And he gave his life in service , enforcing the laws of this nation . '' The crew of a Coast Guard patrol aircraft spotted the panga-style boat near Santa Cruz Island , suspecting `` it was engaged in illegal activity , '' said Jenkins , who did not elaborate on the type of activity . A panga is a work boat often used off the coast of Mexico or Central America that is engine-powered and typically 25 to 45 feet in length , the Coast Guard captain explained . The aircraft 's crew alerted the captain of the Cutter Halibut , an 87-foot patrol boat , which headed to the scene and noticed the panga `` operating with no lights . '' A small boat was dispatched from the Halibut and headed closer to the suspect vessel . Then , the panga accelerated and hit the small boat , forcing Horne and another Coast Guard member overboard . Two Coast Guard colleagues on the same small boat `` quickly '' recovered their shipmates , and all four boarded the Halibut as it headed to the nearest port . The other Coast Guardsman tossed overboard was treated and released later Sunday morning from a hospital after suffering `` relatively minor injuries , '' Jenkins said . The panga boat fled the scene but was later interdicted by a different Coast Guard boat and helicopter , he added . Two people were then detained , the Coast Guard said in a news release , without specifying any charges . `` The Coast Guard , along with its law enforcement partners at the federal , state and local level , are actively working to make sure all of the individuals who are involved with this illegal activity are brought to justice , '' Jenkins said .
Coast Guardsmen spot a suspicious panga boat near Santa Cruz Island , California . Suspicious boat speeds up and hits a small Coast Guard boat , sending two overboard . One of those Coast Guardsmen dies of a traumatic head injury . The suspect boat is later interdicted , and two people are detained .