HAGATNA, Guam — The U.S. Coast Guard was notified at midnight Wednesday of a missing fisherman near a reef off Inajaran, Guam. Friends reported the fisherman’s last known position to the Coast Guard’s 24-hour command center in Apra Harbor.
The 36-year-old male was last seen at 5 p.m. Nov. 12, and was reportedly diving 40 to 50 feet down, with fins, snorkel, spear gun and weights. Guam Fire and Rescue personnel launched a shore side search and the Coast Guard launched a crew aboard a 25-foot small boat to search an area from the tip of Cocos Island to Achang Reef.
In addition, crews aboard a Navy HH-60 helicopter from HSC-25, the Coast Guard 110-foot patrol boat Washington, and a Guam Fire and Rescue jet ski joined the search at first light Thursday.
Search plans are to have crews scouring the reef and open ocean through the night. The Coast Guard reminds mariners of the importance of early notification on missing persons cases.