The provided image depicts Luciano Mercenari, and it has been sourced from the U.S. Coast Guard.
The search for a missing paddleboarder off the coast of Florida has been called off by the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard reported that Luciano Mercenari, 29, went missing around 9:30 p.m. on Monday while paddleboarding in Biscayne Bay.
The USCG promptly dispatched surface and water crews to search for Mercenari, collaborating with local first responders in the quest.
On Tuesday morning, a civilian stumbled upon Mercenari’s paddleboard and waterproof gear bag approximately four miles from the Haulover Inlet. Upon recognizing the paddleboard from a photo that the Coast Guard had released, the civilian reported their discovery to the Coast Guard.
After scouring an area spanning 2,219 square miles, equivalent to the size of Delaware, for a total of 67 hours, the search for Mercenari unfortunately came up with no results. As a result, the Coast Guard made the difficult decision to suspend the search on Thursday.
Captain Chris Cederholm, commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector Miami, expressed his condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Mercenari, stating that suspending an ongoing search and rescue mission is never an easy decision. He further expressed gratitude towards local and state partners for their support and collaboration during the search efforts.
The Coast Guard is still requesting individuals who possess any information regarding the search to contact them at 305-535-4300.
