Authorities searching for a missing off-duty Los Angeles firefighter who went on a recreational dive Wednesday off the Long Beach coast have transitioned their efforts from a search-and-rescue mission to a recovery operation.
“As search operations have continued over the last 19 hours, the survivability profile of the diver and decreased visibility have made it difficult to sustain prolonged search operations,” the Long Beach Fire Department stated in an Instagram post.
These factors, the Fire Department said, along with the “extended time since the diver was last seen,” ultimately led to the decision, made by multiple agencies involved, to change the status of the operation.
Los Angeles Fire Department officials have not released the name of the missing diver but they confirmed Thursday afternoon that the individual was from their ranks.
The incident will now be turned over to the Long Beach Police Department to lead the recovery operation. The Long Beach and Los Angeles fire departments will continue to stay engaged in the operations as well.
“The decision to transition operations to recovery mission is not taken lightly,” the statement said. “As we make this transition, our thoughts and prayers continue for the family of the missing diver and for our brothers and sisters at the Los Angles City Fire Department.”
Wednesday evening, a group of four men departed from the Port of Long Beach to go free diving.
Free diving involves a person holding their breath for as long as possible while diving and swimming without the use of equipment such as scuba gear.
One of the men is presumed to be the driver of the small vessel carrying the three others, said Brian Fisk, a Long Beach Fire Department spokesperson. Eventually, two men returned from free diving while a third did not, Fisk said.
The men called for emergency assistance at 9:55 p.m. Wednesday and the Long Beach Fire Department responded with divers and marine assets at 10:17 p.m., Fisk said.
The emergency call prompted a multiagency response that included the Los Angeles City Fire Department, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Los Angeles County Fire Department Lifeguard Division and Los Angeles Port Police.
Authorities have been and will continue to search for the missing diver with the assistance of side scan sonar, which, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is specifically used for detecting objects on the seafloor.
