Coast Guard searching for missing man near South Padre Island

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas - The Coast Guard is searching for a man who was reported missing early Tuesday morning near the La Copa-Best Western on South Padre Island.

A watchstander at Coast Guard Station South Padre Island overheard a call to the South Padre Island Police Department at 3:37 a.m., stating that he had witnessed an intoxicated man enter the surf and not return.

Coast Guard Station South Padre Island dispatched a 33-foot Special Purpose Craft - Law Enforcement crew to search the area as well as a mobile unit to search the beach and surrounding hotel areas. Coast Guard Air Station Corpus Christi launched an HH-65 Dolphin helicopter rescue crew, however, the air crew encountered bad weather and was forced to return.

The helicopter rescue crew is standing by to launch as soon as the weather clears.

None of the search assets have located any sign of the missing person as of 8 a.m. Tuesday morning.

The missing person is described as a white male, approximately 325 lbs, wearing white swimming trunks. The location he reportedly entered the water is near the La Copa-Best Western.

Anyone with information concerning the case is encouraged to contact Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi at (361) 939-6393.

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