Two bodies recovered in the search for a missing Florida family have been identified and rescue crews have ended their search operations, Coast Guard Capt. Gregory Case said Saturday.
The bodies were those of Ace Kimberly, 45, and his daughter Becky, 17 — who went missing last weekend along with sons Roger, 13, and Donny, 15, while sailing off the coast of Florida between Sarasota and Fort Myers.
“It’s truly one of the most difficult things we do and we do it very carefully,” Case said about ending the search. He offered his condolences to the Kimberly family.
A Cape Coral Fire and Rescue team found one body Thursday morning, east of Boca Grande. It was located about 4 miles southeast of the location where crews found a body in a life jacket late Wednesday afternoon, according to the Coast Guard.
Shortly after the second body was found, a Customs and Border Protection aircraft spotted a sail mast about 100 miles off of Fort Myers’ shore.
The Coast Guard also found a bucket containing personal items about 5 miles from the location where rescuers discovered the first body.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is conducting an accident investigation.
The family had been living on the 29-foot sailboat in Sarasota for about a year. They were sailing to Fort Myers on Sunday afternoon when they encountered a thunderstorm and rough seas.
The boat, which was equipped with an outboard motor, was “not in the best of shape,” and the family was sailing to Fort Myers to work on the sailboat, Case said.