Update: Search For Missing Navy Corpsman Called Off

Update: The search for a swimmer who was last seen drifting out to sea near Del Mar Beach at approximately 5:30 p.m. on Thursday has been called off.

The decision to stop searching for the swimmer, identified as a Navy corpsman attached to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, was made at approximately 7 p.m. Friday after rescue crews searched miles of ocean and San Diego County shoreline for approximately 23 hours, City News Service reported.

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Rescue crews are still actively searching for a swimmer who was last seen drifting out to sea near Del Mar Beach at approximately 5:30 p.m. on Thursday.

The swimmer has been identified as a Navy corpsman attached to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, though officials are not releasing the man's name until recovery efforts have ceased, 11th MEU spokesperson Capt. Roger Hollenbeck told Patch.

The corpsman's friend had been swimming with him and ran to get help. He encountered a bystander who then called 911. The Camp Pendleton Police Department received the call at 5:36 p.m., according to a press release issued by the 11th MEU. The Camp Pendleton Fire Department was then contacted, then the Camp Pendleton lifeguards, who began their emergency search and rescue procedures.

"We're remaining optimistic," said Hollenbeck. "There's still a chance (he's alive) and we're remaining hopeful."

Initial reports that Camp Pendleton military police saw the man and that the man was a surfer were incorrect.

"One of our own is out there," said Hellenbeck. "The Marines are out there, roaming the beaches in tactical vehicles and in teams led by the MEU sergeant major, who set up a command post."

The Coast Guard was notified at approximately 8 p.m. Thursday and an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter and the 87-foot patrol boat "Haddock" were dispatched to search for the missing man, Coast Guard spokesman Petty Officer Henry Dunphy told Patch.

Helicopters were up throughout the night, Dunphy said, and the Oceanside Police Department, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, Oceanside Lifeguards and Camp Pendleton military personnel were part of the search effort.

"We take the last known position of the missing person and do a drift pattern," said Dunphy. "The tide drifts and informs our search pattern."

The Coast Guard is search searching Oceanside harbor and the southern portion of Camp Pendleton, Dunphy said.

Anyone with information on the man's whereabouts is asked to contact the Joint Harbor Operation Center at 619-278-7031.