Swimmer Who Drowned “Started Crying for Help,” Friend Recalls

A group of friends jumped into the surf in Abalone Cove when one of them started yelling for help and could not grab a rope that was thrown to him

After an eight-hour mission, searchers on Thursday still had not found the body of an 18-year-old Long Beach man who drowned when he was swept off a rock by a wave in Abalone Cove in Rancho Palos Verdes one day earlier.

The swimmer's friend helped him get to a rock, but he was swept away.

A report of swimmers in distress came in at 2:57 p.m., with firefighters and lifeguards arriving on the scene within minutes, according to Scott Miller of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

County Fire Inspector Keith Mora said crews received a report of a submerged swimmer and spotted someone underwater.

The swimmer was identified as Joseph Sanchez, 18.

"Once you're in that 24-hour range where you haven't located anything and there's no sign, it turns into a body recovery," Mora said.

Toogee Zepeda said he and his friends were jumping into the surf in Abalone Cove when Sanchez started yelling for help and could not grab a rope that was thrown to him.

"He jumped in. The current started taking him. He started crying for help," Zepeda said. "He couldn't grab onto the rope."

Zepeda said by the time help came, his friend was "nowhere to be seen."

"Every time we had air, another wave kept coming on top of us,'' Zepeda said.

A multi-agency search effort involving the Los Angeles County Fire, Los Angeles Fire and Los Angeles County Sheriff's departments and the U.S. Coast Guard was continuing a day later.

Five divers were searching for the man Thursday morning as poor visibility hampered the recovery. Authorities said they would be searching for as long as it takes to find the body.

"It's like going into a room, shutting the lights off, being in complete darkness and having to feel your way through a room," said LA County Sheriff's Diving Capt. Derrick Chapman.

Miller said dozens of people have been rescued from the area since the beginning of the month -- including five youngsters who became stranded on the rocks on Tuesday.

"People seem to feel a little more comfortable than they should. This environment is extremely dangerous. There's slippery rocks, there's a bad egress to get out and conditions are always changing,'' Miller said.

Fire officials on Thursday announced they would restrict access to Abalone Cove until Sunday. Lifeguards also closed Inspiration and Portuguese Points in Rancho Palos Verdes to swimmers until sundown Sunday due to overload of ocean rescues.

Zepeda said he and his friends come to the spot every week. "We didn't think much of it,'' Zepeda said.

Over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, a big South swell kicked up off the Southern California coast, bringing big waves and dangerous currents.

Since Sunday, lifeguards have made 30 rescues in the area, said Jerry Duhovic, the mayor of Rancho Palos Verdes.

"Today, unfortunately, we have another confirmed death," he said.

Hetty Chang contributed to this report.

Copyright CNS - City News Service
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