VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) – The body of a missing swimmer was found Monday afternoon near 23rd Street, according to the Virginia Beach Police Department.
An investigation revealed the missing swimmer, a 23-year-old man, had been swimming with friends Sunday when he signaled for help. A bystander jumped into the water to assist the swimmer, but their efforts were unsuccessful.
Officials with the Virginia Beach Fire Department received a report of the missing swimmer at 4:09 p.m. near 12th street and the boardwalk. The search included rescue swimmers, fireboats, drones, and units from the Virginia Beach Police Department.
In addition, members of the Virginia Beach Ocean Rescue and the U.S. Coast Guard assisted in the search.
The search was suspended around 7:30 p.m. Sunday and VBFD officials announced that all public safety units were cleared.
The man was from out of town and visiting the area, according to police.
The following photos were submitted by a WAVY viewer:
10 On Your Side spoke to beachgoers who saw the initial response from Virginia Beach Lifesaving Services and emergency response teams.
“I feel like the lifeguards did an awesome job. They had a line, they were diving down looking, but the helicopters from the Coast Guard, it took a while for them to get here,” said beachgoer Kevin Malzone. “It’s unfortunate, I wish they would have found the person missing.”
“I saw the lifeguards flying though the sand. That’s when I realized maybe something crazy was going on,” said another beachgoer Shaye Johnson. “That’s when the helicopter came maybe about 30 minutes after.”
Both say they’ve never seen an emergency response this large before.
“This is my first time seeing this much emergency, EMS, police traffic,” said Johnson, “I’ve been here 4-5 times, and this is my first time seeing it.”
“I’m from Chicago, I’ve seen riots, and I actually retired from the city,” said Malzone, “but I’ve never seen a search and rescue to this magnitude.”
Malzone says he heard someone calling out to lifeguards before the search efforts began.
“He was yelling, ‘”after the second break, after the second break!”‘ I got my glasses, and he just kept screaming to the lifeguards that were on the four-wheelers. It was devastating, somebody’s not gonna go home. It’s awful, awful.”
Continue to check WAVY.com for updates.