Coast Guard officials have suspended their search for a possible missing person after an unmanned kayak and life jacket were found miles off the coast of Oceanside.
After combing through 238 square miles of combined coastline and ocean, authorities said they found no evidence there was a missing person and suspended the search.
A fisherman called the Coast Guard Sector San Diego at approximately 1:20 a.m. Saturday, saying he saw two amber-colored flares. As he was on the phone, he said he saw two more.
CGSD launched a MH-60 Jawhawk helicopter and the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Sea Otter to search for a source of the flares. The Jayhawk completed its search 39 miles northwest of the flare sighting at 5:30 a.m. and the Cutter at 8 a.m. without finding anything.
Shortly after, another Jayhawk crew launched to continue the search and found the unmanned red kayak 16 miles west of Oceanside, at approximately 8:15 a.m. Crews also found a life jacket less than a mile northeast of the kayak.
The kayak looks to be like-new. Officials are still piecing together if the kayak and life jacket are connected to the flare sighting or if the kayak was originally manned.
A Jayhawk crew, an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Los Angeles and a 45-foot boat with a medium-sized crew from San Diego searched throughout the day.
Local
Anyone with information is requested to contact the Joint Harbor Operations Center at (619) 278-7031 or via VHF marine-band radio channel 16.
No further information was immediately available.
