Kayakers see man swim away from his boat before vanishing off Va. shore, officials say
A man says he tried to help a floundering swimmer who then went missing off the coast of Virginia, news outlets report.
Boat and helicopter crews were looking for the swimmer, who was last seen Sunday night in Norfolk, the U.S. Coast Guard said in a news release. The Coast Guard on Monday announced it suspended its search after it “utilized search patterns spanning a total of 164 square miles.”
Efforts related to the “possible drowning” were focused near a coastal area called Ocean View, the Norfolk Police Department said on Twitter.
Officials say a man having boat trouble jumped into the water to try reaching the shore, WAVY reports.
Two kayakers spotted the man swimming away, the Coast Guard says in its release.
One of the kayakers, John Vesterman, says the man was “struggling” and decided to paddle into the water to help him, WVEC reports.
He told the station he tossed life vests toward the swimmer, who was “too tired to grasp onto them.”
Vesterman says he later saw the swimmer go under water and vanish, according to WVEC.
“I’m sad,” he told WTKR. “I wish I could have got there three minutes before, or I wish the life jacket had been a little closer to him.”
Coast Guard officials got to the scene “about 10 minutes later,” WTKR reports.
This story was originally published August 5, 2019 at 10:40 AM.
