SARASOTA, Fla. — The body found in a submerged car in Phillippi Creek has been identified as Jose Andino, who was reported missing amid Hurricane Debby's floodwaters, authorities confirmed.
Andino, 67, was driving to work from Sarasota to Bradenton when he encountered flooded roads, his family previously told 10 Tampa Bay. His cell phone last pinged near Phillippi Creek where flooding devastated the area.
The sheriff's office said he was reported missing on Aug. 6. In the days since, its underwater rescue team, aviation unit and deputies searched the area but came up short. A passerby walking Monday afternoon on the Phillippi Creek footbridge near Graber and Kaufman avenues spotted a submerged car and reported it.
Andino's body was found inside the car. His daughter, Scarleth Andino, said he was trying to get to work in Bradenton at a Bealls distribution center.
“I called him, made sure that he knew where I was,” she recalled in an earlier interview. “I was telling him, like, 'Hey, there's a lot of flooding.'”
She made the call just after 1:30 p.m. Monday; his shift ended at 2 a.m., and when Scarleth woke up Tuesday morning, he wasn't home.
The medical examiner worked Monday afternoon to make an identification.