After 64 hours of looking, the U.S. Coast Guard last Wednesday suspended its search for a man who went missing during a shark dive off the coast of the Bahamas earlier in the week.
Sixty-four-year-old John E. Petty from Longview, Texas, went shark diving last Sunday night near West End, Bahamas with eight others but did not return, according to a Coast Guard 7th District statement:
The Coast Guard immediately launched multiple air and sea assets that searched alongside Royal Bahamas Police Force.
Coast Guard assets used during the search included:
Coast Guard Cutter Dolphin, homeported in Miami.
Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater C-130 Hercules aircraft.
Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater MH-60 Jayhawk rescue helicopter.
Dive gear believed to belong to Petty was found during the extensive search that covered more than 4,600 miles, lasting 64 hours of total search time.
An earlier Coast Guard announcement stated that “Petty was last seen 20 nautical miles northwest of West End, Bahamas by one of the divers in the group.”