Miami

Search Suspended for Missing Person From Downed Aircraft in Ocean Near Miami

The U.S. Coast Guard announced it was suspending its search on Saturday

The U.S. Coast Guard on Saturday suspended its search for the captain missing after a plane crash in the Atlantic Ocean near Miami.

The Coast Guard said it searched for 68-year-old captain Robert Hopkins for about 21 hours and concentrated in an area of 364 square nautical miles.

“Suspending a search is never an easy decision and a lot of factors are considered and calculated before we make that decision,” Capt. Megan Dean, commander of Coast Guard Sector Miami, said in a statement on Saturday. “We have been in regular contact with the family members throughout our search efforts and extend our sympathies for what we know is a very difficult time for them."

One person who sustained injuries was rescued after the Conquest Air 504 went down about 13 miles east of the Bay Harbor Islands.

Footage showed that a Coast Guard helicopter rescued him from the water using a basket to hoist him up, with wreckage from the plane floating nearby.

First officer Rolland Silva, 28, was airlifted to a local hospital by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, according to Conquest Air Cargo. He suffered a broken leg and several lacerations.

According to the FAA, the plane with two on board departed from Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nasaau, Bahamas, and was heading to Opa-locka Executive Airport when it went down around 12:15 p.m.

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