After an extensive search operation, the U.S. Coast Guard has suspended the search for two missing fishermen off the Southern California coast near Palos Verdes Estates. The men, described as in their 50s, failed to return from a fishing trip that began at Cabrillo Beach on Monday, with an expected return by midnight.
The Coast Guard and Los Angeles County Fire Department initiated the search early Tuesday, following reports of the fishermen's overdue return. During the search efforts, their 25-foot fishing vessel was discovered overturned amongst the rocks along the shoreline. Despite the efforts including drones, boats, and jet skis used by rescuers, the search was brought to a halt Wednesday afternoon due to the lack of signs of distress and "no response to UMIB [Urgent Marine Information Broadcast.]," as ABC7 detailed.
Compounding the difficulties, search teams faced inevitable hazards, with Jake Miller, an ocean lifeguard specialist, highlighting the rough weather and high surf warnings in place. Adding to these challenges were extremely low fog conditions that prevented the use of helicopters in the search, as reported by ABC7.
The decision to suspend the search was termed an "active suspension" by the Coast Guard, meaning it would be resumed upon any new evidence or reports of distress, such as people waving for help, as CBS News Los Angeles noted. This holds especially true as the situation unfolded amidst high surf warnings affecting much of the California coastline. The same weather pattern has been attributed to at least one fatality in Santa Cruz County and a missing person in Monterey County.
