Coast Guard suspends search for woman swept out to sea near Santa Cruz

The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for a woman who was swept out to sea near Santa Cruz on Sunday evening , the agency said on Tuesday. Se Nah Park, 24, was last seen in the water near Panther State Beach at about 8:30 p.m. on Sunday. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office said a group of friends were at the beach when a wave knocked several of them over. The Cal Fire San Mateo-Santa Cruz Unit said a group had gone through the keyhole at the beach and became trapped when the tide rose. Three people were able to get to safety while Park was not, Cal Fire said. The Coast Guard said in a press release on Tuesday that its San Francisco sector coordinated eight hours of search efforts across 95 square miles using helicopter crews, boat crews, and a drone pilot. California State Parks personnel, the Santa Cruz Fire Department and the Sheriff's Office also participated in the search, which was suspended on Monday afternoon, the Coast Guard said. "Suspending a search is a difficult decision," Coast Guard Lt. Max Holloway said in a statement. "Given the extensive search effort of the surrounding area and environmental conditions, we have suspended active search efforts pending further developments. We worked closely with our partner agencies and exhausted all available resources in our attempt to locate Ms. Park. Our deepest condolences are with her family and loved ones." At the time of the incident, coastal areas were under a beach hazards statement issued by the National Weather Service because of the risk of sneaker waves and strong rip currents. In: Santa Cruz Cal Fire United States Coast Guard Santa Cruz County Featured Local Savings