Local

Diver missing near Alligator Reef Tuesday night

By David Goodhue

dgoodhue@keysreporter.com
An MH-65 Dolphin like this was one of several U.S. Coast Guard assets launched Tuesday, Jan. 31, to search for a missing diver off Islamorada in the Upper Florida Keys.
An MH-65 Dolphin like this was one of several U.S. Coast Guard assets launched Tuesday, Jan. 31, to search for a missing diver off Islamorada in the Upper Florida Keys. File photo by David Goodhue/The Reporter and Keynoter

The U.S. Coast Guard searched for a missing scuba diver off the Upper Florida Keys Tuesday night.

The diver disappeared in the vicinity of Alligator Reef, about five miles off the ocean side of Lower Matecumbe Key. The crew of a vessel called The Pisces reported the diver missing around 5:15 p.m., according to Petty Officer Eric Woodall, Coast Guard spokesman.

The Coast Guard launched a 33-foot fast response boat from Coast Guard Station Islamorada, a MH-65-Dolphin helicopter from Air Station Miami and the cutter Charles Sexton from Sector Key West to conduct the search.

The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission also participated in the effort, Woodall said.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

David Goodhue: 305-440-3204

This story was originally published January 30, 2017 at 8:08 PM with the headline "Diver missing near Alligator Reef Tuesday night."