Jet skier who went missing off Long Beach found alive after 12-hour search, Coast Guard says
LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- A 53-year-old man who was riding a jet ski before going missing in Long Beach was found alive after a 12-hour search in the water.
The Long Beach Fire Department received 911 calls reporting two jet skiers missing around 10 p.m. Sunday. The two people had reportedly fallen into the water and were unable to get back onto their jet skis.
The department immediately began coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard and Long Beach Police Department to search for the missing jet skiers.
Then, around 10:19 p.m., a good Samaritan on a boat called 911 after hearing a woman yelling for help from the Long Beach Breakwater, officials said. The woman reportedly swam for an hour to find help.
Lifeguards responded and rescued the woman, bringing her aboard a fire boat for assessment. She was taken to shore, where paramedics evaluated her and transported her to the hospital in stable condition.
Several hours later, around 1:45 a.m. Monday, the Coast Guard and LBFD fire boats found the two jet skis, but the missing man was nowhere to be found.
Crews continued searching throughout the morning.
Then, around 10:48 a.m., a Coast Guard helicopter spotted the missing man floating in a green life jacket approximately 3 miles offshore from the Seal Beach Pier. A Coast Guard rescue swimmer was lowered to him from a helicopter, and they successfully rescued the man.
The man, identified as 53-year-old Paul Anthony Carbullido Jr., was then airlifted to shore and assessed by paramedics. He was also said to be in stable condition, though he had signs of hypothermia.
