Community Corner

Family, Friends of Missing Fishermen Start Site to Raise Money for Search Effort

Dive of the sunken boat scheduled for today

Family and friends of the seven men missing after a fishing vessel sunk in the Sea of Cortez, including two men from Sonoma County, have started a website which they hope will put pressure on authorities to continue the search.

The site, www.findourfathers.com, aims to raise money for ongoing search and rescue operations in Baja California, which are now in their eighth day.

“We have been assured by the American Consulate and the governor of Mexico that the search for them will continue…the end date is yet to be determined,” wrote the authors of the site. “It is imperative that we make the best use of time that has been given to us.”

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The men have been missing since July 3, when their fishing boat, the Erik, capsized in an unexpected storm off the coast of San Felipe, Baja, Mexico. Thirty five people have been found and one was found drowned.

Among the missing is Petaluma resident Shawn Chaddock, 49, and Russell Bautista, 60, of Penngrove. According to reports, Chaddock is a diabetic and may have gone back to the boat to retrieve his medication.

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The Mexican Navy is leading the search effort, and the U.S. Coast Guard is assisting. The Coast Guard has searched over 3,000 square miles of land and water, but has not found any trace of the missing fishermen. A dive team from Hawaii was scheduled to search the sunken boat, located about 200 feet under water.


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