ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Family members of three missing fishermen who disappeared more than a month ago off the coast of Brunswick are feverishly scouring the coasts of St. Johns County.
This comes after debris from their boat was discovered in the water off the coast of St. Johns County Sunday. On Monday, the United Cajun Navy, who found the fish box of the boat, posted a photo of a possible life raft seen in the water.
The search continued Tuesday morning after the discovery.
The Coast Guard said the missing men are Tyler Barlow, Caleb Wilkinson and Dalton Conway. Kim Jones is Tyler’s mom.
Although it is not confirmed if the life raft belonged to the Carol Ann boat, Jones said it’s a sign to keep up the fight.
“I believe that my son, our children, our sons are in a raft. The fight that I’m expecting them, our boys to fight with every bit that they’ve got. I’m going to do the same,” Jones said.
She along with family and friends walked along the beaches and waterways off St. Johns County all day, ending the search for the night.
“We came out here to walk the beaches, search the beaches, see if there’s any debris. With seeing that fish bin surface, there would possibly be other things washing ashore,” Jones said.
With a shirt that shows the boat, the Carol Ann, and the hashtag “Won’t Stop,” Jones says the discovery of the boat’s fish box has given them their first glimmer of hope. They spent a lot of time in the area around the Matanzas Inlet Monday, after reports of a possible life raft circulated on social media.
“It’s pretty emotional because it’s been a month, and see some type of debris that was identified and confirmed to be part of the Carol Ann. So, just praying and hoping they’re in the life raft and that would be following the same trajectory as the bin,” Jones said.
The fishing box that was found is what fishermen store their fish in. Bill Edinger is with the Freedom Boat Club. He said he was not surprised it was found floating.
“A fish box is going to be insulated, pretty much an all foam box, you would normally put your fish catch in. For commercial fishing 4-5 days, it would stay insulated. A lot of ice,” Edinger said.
Now family members and friends continue their feverish search of the coast, hoping for a miracle.
When we asked Jones why her shirt said ‘Won’t Stop’ -- she said, “Because we won’t stop. We’re not gonna stop looking for them and believing that God can sustain them. We’re never gonna stop looking for these boys ever.”
As far as the Coast Guard, they did temporarily renew their search after the fish box was discovered. They have put out an urgent alert to all mariners in the area to keep an eye out and they will resume their search if anything is discovered.