Unconscious snorkeler pulled from water, dies in Key West, sheriff’s office says
.jpg "A North Carolina man died at a Florida Keys hospital Sunday, May 10, 2026, after he was found unconscious while snorkeling near Key West.")
A North Carolina man died at a Florida Keys hospital after he was found unconscious while snorkeling near Key West Sunday afternoon, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said.
Benjamin Lee Millspaw, 56, was swimming off Cottrell Key, a mangrove island about nine miles northwest of Key West, around noon, and he was pulled from the water, according to the sheriff’s office. He was with a commercial snorkeling company, Adam Linhardt, sheriff’s office spokesman, said.
The U.S. Coast Guard responded, and Millspaw, from Belmont, North Carolina, was taken to the Lower Keys Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, the sheriff’s office said.
An autopsy is pending to determine the cause of death, but Linhardt said investigators don’t suspect foul play.
This story was originally published May 11, 2026 at 11:01 AM with the headline "Unconscious snorkeler pulled from water, dies in Key West, sheriff’s office says."
