Body of Man Who Drowned Sunday Found

The body of a swimmer caught Sunday in a riptide off Newport Beach washed ashore Friday morning, the Orange County coroner’s office reported.

Willie Earl McFarland, 38, of San Bernardino was found by a passerby at 7:28 a.m. on Huntington Beach between Goldenwest Street and Seapoint Avenue. His death was ruled an accidental drowning, said Richard McAnally, an assistant chief with the coroner’s office.

McFarland disappeared while swimming Sunday evening at Newport Beach near 56th Street, an area posted with red flags that day warning of unsafe water conditions. McFarland and three other swimmers were caught in a riptide about 100 yards offshore. The other three were helped to shore unharmed.