Search for Man Lost Off Newport Is Halted

After combing the waters off Newport Beach all day, the U.S. Coast Guard called off a search for a fisherman missing since early Sunday.

The 18-foot fishing boat he and a companion had been on capsized about 7:30 a.m. about three miles off Newport Beach, said Petty Officer Kerry Kingery of Search and Rescue for the Coast Guard.

“A wave came over the back end of the boat and they started to sink,” he said. “It’s a low kind of vessel, and it doesn’t take much for it to sink.”

When the dory began to turn over, the two men jumped into frigid water, which was about 52 to 54 degrees. The only life preserver on board got caught under the boat, so neither could use it, Kingery said.

One of the men, Russell Jensen Jr., 32, of Norwalk, grabbed an empty gas can and used it to swim to a fishing boat.

He was pulled aboard by crew members of Freelance, who then sailed to the spot where Jensen had left his partner.

“When they got back to where the vessel was, only the ship’s bow was sticking out of the water. The other guy was gone,” Kingery said.

The Coast Guard, along with Orange County Rescue, sent two helicopters and four boats to search for the 33-year-old man. They found his jacket and waders.

Jensen was taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian suffering from hypothermia. The victim’s identity was withheld pending notification of family.