Search for teen ‘struggling to swim’ in surf at Florida beach ends, Coast Guard says
UPDATE:
The U.S. Coast Guard has ended its search for a 14-year-old boy last seen struggling to swim in rough surf on a beach in Destin, Florida.
A body matching the description of the missing child, who wasn’t named, was spotted on James Lee Beach just before 2:30 p.m. Thursday, according to a news release.
ORIGINAL:
A search is continuing for a teen who vanished Wednesday while swimming at a Destin, Florida, beach, U.S. Coast Guard officials said.
Watchstanders with the agency’s Mobile sector were alerted to a distressed swimmer at Henderson Beach State Park around 6:45 p.m., according to a news release.
Friends said the 14-year-old was “struggling to swim” in surf about 200 feet off the beach when he went under and never resurfaced.
Crews launched a 45-foot Response Boat crew from its station in Destin, in addition to an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew.
Officials said the teen, who wasn’t publicly named, was last seen wearing gray shorts.
“Coast Guard crews searched through the night and are currently still searching for the boy,” the release says, adding that personnel with the Okaloosa Sheriff’s County Office and Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission are helping in the effort.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Coast Guard’s Sector Mobile Command Center at 251-441-6211.
This story was originally published September 2, 2021 at 1:19 PM with the headline "Search for teen ‘struggling to swim’ in surf at Florida beach ends, Coast Guard says."