A 63-year-old Fort Pierce man has been identified as the diver who died near the Fort Pierce Inlet.
Greer Boyd was found at the bottom of the ocean about 6 to 7 miles north-northeast of the inlet, nearly due east of Avalon State Park. The U.S. Coast Guard Station in Fort Pierce received a mayday call about 11:30 a.m. June 26 reporting a missing diver off St. Lucie County, according to sheriff’s officials.
The Coast Guard notified the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which deployed four vessels for the search-and-rescue operation, according to officials. The St. Lucie County sheriff’s marine unit also responded after monitoring the distress call.
A group of people in a boat, who were friends of the missing diver, learned about the incident and left the Fort Pierce Inlet about 1 p.m. to help with the search, according to officials. The Coast Guard and FWC also provided aerial support to locate the vessel.
Officials learned Boyd and friends had been fishing in a vessel earlier in the day when the trolling motor became detached and fell overboard. The group marked the location, went to shore to get diving equipment and returned to the area to recover the motor.
Boyd entered the water alone to dive and search for the missing equipment and resurfaced about 40 yards from the vessel. When the other boaters arrived at the surface location where Boyd last was seen, they found only his buoyancy compensator and air tank in the water.
A civilian diver then entered the water about 4:10 p.m. and found Boyd at the bottom of the ocean about 55 feet deep. He was pulled from the water and pronounced dead before he was taken to the Coast Guard station.
An autopsy was scheduled for June 29, according to officials, and the investigation remained open and ongoing.
Laurie K. Blandford is a breaking news reporter with TCPalm. Email her at laurie.blandford@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida man, 63, identified as diver found dead at bottom of ocean
Reporting by Laurie K. Blandford, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Laurie K. Blandford, Treasure Coast Newspapers | USA TODAY Network
