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Missing boater's wife clutches Bible as she boards plane to continue search

'We are not giving up. That's it'

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A wife is not giving up on her husband, even after the Coast Guard announced at noon Thursday it would suspend the active search for him and his fellow firefighter at sundown. 

Natasha Walker clutched a Bible as she boarded a plane at Jacksonville Executive at Craig Airport later in the afternoon to continue to search for her husband, 33-year-old Justin Walker, on her own. 

"We are not giving up. That's it," she said. "We're just not giving up."

Though the active search is coming to an end, the Coast Guard will continue to search for Walker and his friend, 37-year-old Brian McCluney, with its daily boats on the water. During a meeting Thursday morning, the Coast Guard told Natasha Walker that the computer models just couldn't track her husband's whereabouts anymore.

WATCH: Missing boater's wife 'not giving up'

"It's difficult. It worries me. I know the feeling when you don't have a lot of help. I don't want other people to have to feel that way," Natasha Walker said. "They can only do so much. They're limited by science and mathematics and however they do that stuff."

But she's not limited by that.

"Nope. God's bigger than that," she said. 

Though she planned to search for hours Thursday evening, the pilot later told News4Jax that they weren't able to get far in their search because of weather. 


About the Author
Scott Johnson headshot

Scott is a multi-Emmy Award Winning Anchor and Reporter, who also hosts the “Going Ringside With The Local Station” Podcast. Scott has been a journalist for 25 years, covering stories including six presidential elections, multiple space shuttle launches and dozens of high-profile murder trials.

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