The body of a stand-up paddle-boarder who disappeared Saturday afternoon on the west side of Stearns Wharf was pulled from the Santa Barbara Harbor nearly two hours later.
Rescue swimmers from the Santa Barbara Fire Department and the Harbor Patrol spent about 35 minutes in the water looking for the man, who was missing in an area that was about 30 feet deep, Fire Department spokesman Kevin Corbett said.
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter joined the search from the air, and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Dive Team initially was asked to respond to the scene.
However, it turned out that the San Luis Obispo County sheriff’s Dive Team was already in the area for training aboard the dive boat Truth.
“The dive team was taken to the last known victim location and began their search,” Corbett said. “Minutes later, the victim’s remains were recovered from the bottom of the harbor floor.”
He said the man was brought by the Harbor Patrol to Sea Landing, where firefighters and paramedics confirmed that he was deceased.
The victim, a 30-year-old Ugandan man whose name was not released pending notification of relatives, was with a woman when he disappeared at about 4 p.m., Corbett said. His paddle board was recovered, he added.
The woman was picked up by a Harbor Patrol boat and brought safely back to shore.
“The Santa Barbara City Fire Department strongly recommends everyone wear a proper fitting U.S. Coast Guard-certified life preserver anytime you are participating in activities on the water,” Corbett said.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
