The teens were last seen Friday afternoon buying fuel near Jupiter and were believed to have been heading toward the Bahamas.
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The search expanded to waters off the coast of Savannah on Tuesday, hundreds of miles from Jupiter, FL, where the 14-year-olds, Austin Stephanos and Perry Cohen were last seen on Friday. Fedor estimated that Austin and Perry could likely survive about four or five days at sea based in part on survivability charts.
“These boys have been out there doing this forever”.
14-year-old stepson Perry Cohen brilliant close friend Austin Stephanos were actually last noticed Friday mid-day picking usd110 of gasoline nearby the township of Jupiter.
The teens’ moms defended allowing the boys to go out on the water on their own, noting they grew up in a boating community in Tequesta, Fla., and learned to swim before they could walk. The Coast Guard has stepped up its desperate air and sea search for the pair, but has so far failed to find any trace of where the boys might have drifted after their boat capsized. It was unclear how many life jackets had been on board, nor was it known what other supplies they had. “We want them home safely”.
Murgio and her daughter Isabella, 15, organized a Monday night vigil that drew an estimated 1,000 people to Jupiter Inlet Park, where illuminated lanterns were released into the air as a sign of hope for the boys’ return. “We’ve both always said that they’re just as comfortable on a boat and the water as they are on land”.
On Sunday search crews spotted the boys’ overturned 5.8 metre boat, more than 290 kilometres from where they started their journey. The crew eased open the back cargo ramp and two men flopped on their bellies so they could search the sea below.
“We’re going into our fifth day of searching, and we don’t know if they have any flotation devices”.
Still, Lehmann said boaters of any age and experience level could encounter danger.
The situation has grown increasingly dire since the boys’ capsized boat was found Sunday, but their families are not giving up hope.
Six Coast Guard cutters, several small boats, and HC-130 Hercules airplanes are involved in the search, which has stretched from Jupiter to Charleston, South Carolina, the Coast Guard said.
On the other hand, the boys’ families are offering a reward of $100,000 to rescue the teens and asked the help of experienced boatmen in the area to join in the search.
“Friends, family, relatives, anybody, go on social media, contact your relatives, contact your friends who live near the beach to get on down there and look for anything odd, that doesn’t look normal and report it immediately”, said Cohen’s father, Nick Korniloff.
Despite the kids’ expertise, some questioned the families’ decision to let the boys take a boat out alone. The Coast Guard immediately embarked on an extensive search.
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Water temperatures were warm and not cited as a factor in the boys’ survival. One life vest was floating nearby.
