LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CA — A deep-dive drone Sunday found the body of a diver who sank next to an oil platform, in 270 feet of water off Long Beach, on Saturday. The body was found about 7:40 a.m. Sunday by a sheriff’s Special Enforcement Detail deep dive cadre using an underwater remotely operated vehicle, said Deputy Joe Gordon of the Sheriff’s Information Bureau.
“The diver’s body was located and recovered in over 200 feet depth water near Oil Platform Elly,” Gordon said. “He was pronounced dead at 7:50 a.m.”
The diver’s body was transported to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office, he said. Two other divers were injured in the accident, a Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatcher said. One was released and the other was taken to the hyperbaric chamber at Two Harbors, on Catalina Island, for treatment.
The incident was near Platform Elly, about 7-1/2 miles off the coast of Long Beach, at about 12:30 p.m. Saturday, according to the USCG.
The diver went into an uncontrolled decent in water about 270 feet deep. The agency was notified by a crew member aboard a commercial dive vessel.
A search was mounted, but it was suspended at sunset, said U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Mark Braney.
The missing man was described as in his mid-50s, 5 feet-8 inches tall, and weighing about 200 pounds.
No name was released and it was not clear if the man was a recreational enthusiast or a commercial diver.
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