#LASD deep dive team now searching for missing Catalina diver, mixed gas, re breathers, dive to 300′ depth @LASDHQ pic.twitter.com/HNRij0lFBK
— SEB (@SEBLASD) October 1, 2014
A search for a scuba diver who surfaced and yelled help before going under the water in Santa Catalina’s Emerald Bay was called off Wednesday night.
The Coast Guard suspended its search at 6:37 p.m. after boat and air crews had scoured about 587 square nautical miles and spent more than 69 hours in search patterns, said Adam Eggers of the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard conducted 26 sorties in an effort to find the diver’s body.
The search was termed a “recovery operation” by Tuesday afternoon, sheriff’s Capt. Doug Fetteroll said. It was conducted by sheriff’s deputies and Coast Guard personnel with assistance from the Los Angeles and Los Angeles County fire departments and Los Angeles Port Police, Eggers said.
A charter boat was on a night dive in Emerald Bay Monday when the diver disappeared, Capt. Rob Pelkey of Baywatch Avalon said.
According to the Daily Breeze, a group of divers were on a charter boat called The Sand Dollar out of San Pedro.
Separately, Eggers said a diver was found dead today off Anacapa Island, bringing the number of diving-related deaths in the area to three since lobster season opened on Saturday.
“The Coast Guard doesn’t regulate recreational diving but is generally called in to assist during diving emergencies,” Coast Guard Capt Jennifer Williams said. “Diving is a sport that leaves little room for error and we urge everyone who is in the water to make safety a top priority.”
Emerald Bay, one of Southern California’s top snorkeling and scuba diving spots, is on the west end of the island, about 2 miles northwest of Isthmus Cove at Two Harbors.
— City News Service