Coast Guard suspends search and rescue in the Gulf

At a press conference Monday, the U.S. Coast Guard announced that they would be suspending their search efforts for the missing crew members from the Seacor Power vessel that capsized off the coast last Tuesday, April 13.

Six crew members were saved that day, five people have been found dead and eight people are still missing.

“We’ve had to make the difficult to decision to suspend search and rescue efforts at sunset today,” said Coast Guard Capt. Will E. Watson, commander of Coast Guard Sector New Orleans. “The overall factor is the probability that a person can survive given the conditions.”

Efforts to recover the victims will remain ongoing by contract divers hired by Seacor. As many as 17 divers have been involved with the search in and around the partially submerged vessel. During the press conference, Drew Ehlers of the National Transportation Safety Board said their investigation could take 18 to 24 months.

The Coast Guard search by air and sea, which covered several thousand square miles, will end on its seventh day.