Coast Guard Suspends Search For Person Possibly In Water Near San Francisco's Ocean Beach

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF)— The United States Coast Guard has suspended their search for a man possibly in the water after a boat ran aground near Ocean Beach in San Francisco Monday morning.

A helicopter, two search boats and a beach rover from the fire department were unable to find the captain of the 30-foot fishing boat that ran aground in 10-feet of water just south of the Park Chalet on the north end of Ocean Beach. He was identified by officials as Timothy Lybrand.

Around 3:34 a.m. a Mayday call was made from the fishing vessel Paloma to others, which was then relayed to first responders. Debris is on the beach along with the smell of diesel fuel, but no sign of anyone.

Lybrand, a Santa Cruz resident, was believed to have had a life vest on and was going to try to swim for the shore, but no one's heard from him since around the time of the distress call.

A rescue swimmer from the fire department got aboard, but found no one topside. It was deemed too dangerous to go below deck as the vessel was being tossed about.

Coast Guard and San Francisco fire crews responded but did not find Lybrand after several hours of searching an 18-square-mile area between Ocean Beach and the Golden Gate Bridge, Coast Guard officials told Bay City News Service.

The Coast Guard then suspended its search efforts around noon.

"The decision to suspend a search and rescue case is always difficult," Coast Guard Capt. Mike Day said in a statement.

There was a smell of gas coming from the wreckage but there was no visible sheen on the water to indicate an oil spill, Coast Guard officials said.

Coast Guard and National Park Service personnel are coordinating to ensure all fuel and hazardous materials are safely removed from the boat.

TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Bay City News Service contributed to this report.