ENGLEWOOD, Fla. — The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for a 70-year-old boater who was reported missing in the Gulf of Mexico, the agency said in a news release.
Bert Erwin departed Rose Marina in Marco Island on Monday to get to Indian Rocks Beach, the agency said on X. A good Samaritan reportedly called Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders Wednesday around 10:30 a.m. to report that Erwin was overdue.
Crews located Erwin's disabled 37-foot boat 28 miles off Englewood, according to the Coast Guard. No one was reportedly aboard, and rescue crews searched 8,462 square miles for Erwin, but found no trace of him anywhere, according to the agency.
The search was called off around 10:30 p.m. Thursday off the coast of Englewood, the Coast Guard said.
"We offer our deepest condolences to Mr. Erwin’s loved ones,” Lt. Andrew Grady, search and rescue mission coordinator at Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, stated in the release. "One of the hardest decisions to make during a search is a suspension.”
Anyone with information on Erwin or his whereabouts can call Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders at 866-881-1392.