The U.S Coast Guard has suspended a search for a 54-year-old man after being swept into the sea at a California beach over the weekend.
Authorities have confirmed that a child, identified as five-year-old Naretzi Navarrete from Merced, California, was also swept out to sea by the same wave at Martins Beach in Half Moon Bay. The incident, which occurred on Saturday, November 25, 2023, led to an extensive search operation by the U.S. Coast Guard.
The young girl was retrieved from the waters and taken to a local hospital. Her retrieval was facilitated by a helicopter and a rescue boat, leading to her being airlifted to Stanford Hospital.
Despite the efforts of the medical staff, she was pronounced dead at 3:32 pm on Sunday, November 26.
The search for the 54-year-old man, later identified as Pascal A. Micheletto Soriano of Hughson, California, the young girl’s grandfather, was called off on Sunday around 2:53 pm. He remains missing following the incident.
The Coast Guard reported that they searched for over 22 hours, covering a vast area of 100 square miles, but were unable to locate him.
Captain Jordan Baldueza, deputy commander of the Coast Guard Sector in San Francisco, described the decision to suspend the search as extremely difficult. He expressed that it was one of the hardest decisions to make, acknowledging that despite nearly 24 hours of continuous search, there had been no sightings of Micheletto Soriano.
This incident coincided with warnings from the National Weather Service about the increased risk of sneaker waves in the area. These warnings, issued for Saturday and early Sunday, highlighted the danger of such waves, which can unexpectedly surge much farther up the beach than expected, catching swimmers and beachgoers off guard. The National Weather Service cautioned that these waves could sweep people into the frigid waters of the Pacific Ocean.
The incident has brought to light the dangers posed by sneaker waves, especially in areas like Half Moon Bay, known for their scenic beauty but also for their potential maritime hazards.
