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Pleasanton abalone diver dies off Mendocino Coast | The Press Democrat
The body of a missing abalone diver from Pleasanton was recovered off the Mendocino Coast near Little River over the weekend.
Hes at least the seventh person to die while abalone hunting off the North Coast this year.
Yoshihiro Ohhashi, 57, had been reported missing shortly after noon Friday by his diving partner, the Mendocino County Sheriffs Office reported Tuesday. The partner had become ill from the rough ocean at Cobblers Point and climbed out of the water, sheriffs officials said. In doing so, he lost sight of his friend. The partner climbed to the top of a bluff to view the ocean and saw only his friends overturned flotation device.
He ran to Van Damme State Park and contacted emergency services, sheriffs officials said.
Rescue teams from the Mendocino Volunteer Fire Department, U.S. Coast Guard, state parks, and the Sheriffs Office conducted a search. It was called off at dark and resumed Saturday. It concluded that day when the missing mans body was located by the fire departments divers in about 15 feet of water near where hed last been seen, sheriffs officials said.
The cause of his death has not been determined, sheriffs officials said.
Ohhashi had several years of experience diving for abalone, including in the area where he died, said Sheriffs Capt. Greg Van Patten. His friend had been diving just once before, he said.