Coast Guard, agency partners searching for 71-year-old man 30 miles southwest Crystal River

CRYSTAL RIVER, Fla. — The Coast Guard continues to search Thursday for a 71-year-old man 30 miles southwest Crystal River.

Missing is a man from Crystal River.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg command center received a 911 relay at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday from Bishop’s wife stating he was overdue. She stated he departed Wednesday at 10 a.m from the Fort Island Trail Park aboard his 23-foot fishing boat. He was to return before sunset and was wearing a tee shirt and khaki shorts.

Watchstanders issued an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast, launched a 27-foot Utility Boat-Medium (UT-M) boatcrew from Coast Guard Station Yankeetown, a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium (RB-M) boatcrew from Station Sand Key and an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Air Station Clearwater.

The Hercules aircrew spotted Bishop’s boat 15 miles south of Crystal River Thursday about 1 a.m. and the RB-M boatcrew confirmed it was unmanned and adrift.

Search crews are saturating a 1,250 square mile area west of Crystal River in search of Bishop. Partner agency personnel from Citrus County Sheriff’s Office and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission are assisting with the search.

The Coast Guard urges all boaters to file a float plan with someone on land before venturing out on the water. Please download the Coast Guard Boating Safety APP for many safety tips and tools.

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Coast Guard suspends search for missing cruise ship crewmember 267 miles northwest of Puerto Rico

HC-130, Air Station Clearwater ©USCG (archive) 

Coast Guard crews suspended their search at approximately 2:30 p.m., Thursdayfor a missing Royal Caribbean cruise ship Harmony of the Seas crewmember 267 miles northwest of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector San Juan, Puerto Rico received a notification from the cruise ship Tuesday at approximately 1:45 p.m., stating a crewmember had reportedly went overboard.

“We’ve been in contact with members of Mr. Hough’s family throughout our search efforts and know this is a very difficult and painful time for them,” said Cmdr. Christopher Douglas, Coast Guard Sector San Juan chief of response. “Suspending a search is one of the most difficult decisions we have to make as first responders, and it is never made lightly.”

HC-144 Ocean Sentry, Air Station Miami ©USCG (archive)

Coast Guard rescue crews were composed of Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater HC-130 Hercules airplanes, Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplanes and the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Resolute (WMEC-620), homeported in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Crews searched for approximately 83 hours covering 3,707 square miles.

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Coast Guard conducts overflight assessment of Hurricane Michael affected areas near Apalachicola, Fla.

A Coast Guard crew member aboard an HC-130 Hercules airplane from Air Station Clearwater, Florida, drops a self-locating datum marker buoy to determine the flow of storm surge during an aerial assessment of damage due to Hurricane Michael near Apalachicola, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 11, 2018. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Ashley Johnson.)

Coast Guard crew members aboard an HC-130 Hercules airplane from Air Station Clearwater, Florida, conduct an aerial assessment of coastal areas affected by Hurricane Michael near Apalachicola, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 11, 2018. During the flight from Clearwater to Apalachicola, crew members dropped several self-locating datum marker buoys to determine the flow of storm surge. (U.S. Coast Guard photos by Petty Officer 2nd Class Ashley J. Johnson.)

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