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U.S. Coast Guard ship and helicopter were continuing their search Tuesday for a 64-year-old urchin diver who disappeared near
Santa Cruz Island.
The Coast Guard was notified about 1 p.m. Monday that the diver, from the fishing vessel “Josefina Dos” out of Santa Barbara, had not resurfaced, said Petty Officer 3rd Class Cory Mendenhall.
The owner of the vessel, Andres Martinez, and two other men travelled on Martinez’s boat Monday morning to an area about 300 yards off the north end of Santa Cruz Island, where all three conducted their dive to a depth of about 25 feet, according to
Santa Barbara County sheriff’s spokesman Drew Sugars.
Ninety minutes later, after the other two men had completed their dives, they began searching for Martinez, who had not resurfaced, Sugars said. Divers with the
Ventura County Sheriff’s Department joined the search, during which time they discovered Martinez’s weight belt and some other items at the bottom of the dive location, Sugars said.
A rescue helicopter out of Los Angeles was dispatched to the scene, Mendenhall said, along with the cutter “Halibut” from Marina del Rey.
The search also involved a rescue boat from Coast Guard Station Channel Islands Harbor, and the Coast Guard Cutter Blackfin from Santa Barbara. A helicopter and divers from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department and Los Angeles County divers also responded to the scene, Mendenhall said.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Martinez had not been located, Sugars said.
Divers with the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department were scheduled to search the area Tuesday, but a
small-craft advisory for the Santa Barbara Channel has put that on hold until Wednesday, Sugars said.
