BATON ROUGE - A tugboat caught fire in the Mississippi River along East Baton Rouge Parish, forcing crew members to abandon the vessel.

The East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office said the boat was engulfed in flames near Profit Island early Wednesday morning.

Officials told WBRZ seven people were aboard the boat at the time. All of them were able to escape and were taken to safety by another nearby boat. 

It's still unclear what caused the boat to catch fire. 

Local firefighters and EBR deputies assisted in responding to the blaze, and the U.S. Coast Guard is leading an investigation into the incident.