The
Coast Guard rescued a scuba diver reported missing off Cambria late Sunday afternoon after she lost contact with her diving partner, spurring a search involving several agencies. The search lasted about 90 minutes.
The woman, described as a scuba diver in her 30s, went missing offshore shortly before 5 p.m. She and her diving partner were in the water about a mile from the shoreline, officials who gathered at Leffingwell Landing said.
“Her partner that was in the vessel said he last had contact with her when she was about 40 feet under,”
Cambria fire Capt. Emily Torlano said while the search was still underway. “She was last seen off Harvey Street, about a mile offshore. We’re hoping maybe she got separated and swam to shore, but at this point, we don’t know.”
The search extended about two miles south of Harvey, Torlano said.
A Cambria Fire rescue boat set out south from Leffingwell Landing in search of the diver, one of two boats employed by the agency in the rescue. The Coast Guard and
Cal Fire also provided boats, joining two
CHP helicopters in the search.
About 15 minutes later, word came over officials’ portable radio that the survivor had been located. Neither she or her diving partner was in need of medical assistance, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Greg Alex said.
“He came back up and she didn’t,” Alex said. “She (eventually) came back up to the surface and had drifted down a ways. She’s just tired, not needing medical treatment, so they’re going to bring her back to Morro Bay.”
Officials at Leffingwell did not know the woman’s name or place of residence. The
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office and
State Parks were also involved in the rescue effort.
