The Coast Guard is desperately searching for a U.S. Marine who disappeared while swimming off a beach in Puerto Rico.
Samuel Wanjiru, 26, was swept into the sea at La Pared beach in Luquillo on Wednesday.
The rescue mission was launched just hours after another American tourist died while trying to save his children from the dangerous waves.
The father, who has not been publicly identified, managed to save his teenage daughters before succumbing to the strong currents in Montones Beach in Isabela.
Wanjiru, from Worcester, Massachusetts, was standing on a reef when a huge wave threw him into the water around 4 p.m.
The Coast Guard desperately searches for a US Marine who disappeared while swimming on a beach in Puerto Rico
Samuel Wanjiru, 26, was swept into the sea at La Pared beach in Luquillo on Wednesday.
The rescue mission was launched just hours after another American tourist died while trying to save his children from the dangerous waves.
The father was pulled unconscious from the water at Montones Beach in Isabela before being pronounced dead.
The video shows rescuers in helicopters and jet skis frantically combing the area where the Marine was last seen.
It comes as Puerto Rico officials warned that the current is particularly strong at the moment, with waves reaching up to 12 feet high.
As of Thursday, six rescue missions had been launched in just 48 hours.
The waves were so strong that the search for Wanjiru had to be temporarily suspended.
“This month has been deadly in terms of beach drownings in the Puerto Rico area,” said Capt. José E. Díaz, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Juan.
‘People must realize that the situation is serious enough to limit our ability to respond to search and rescue cases with surface vessels without further endangering our crews and assets.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families who have lost loved ones at sea, we hope they find strength during this very difficult time.”
He noted that most beaches in Puerto Rico do not have lifeguards and that conditions are “extremely dangerous” at this time.
The video shows rescuers in helicopters and jet skis frantically combing the area where the Marine was last seen.
It comes as Puerto Rico officials warned that the current is particularly strong at the moment, with waves reaching up to 12 feet high.
Capt. José E. Díaz, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Juan, urged beachgoers to avoid the coast over the weekend.
The National Weather Service in San Juan Puerto Rico has reported warnings of high surf, small boats and life-threatening rip currents for the eastern, northern and western beaches of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands during the end of week.
Wanjiru is a reserve Marine assigned to Marine Wing Support Squadron 472, Marine Aircraft Group 49, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, in Chicopee.
He served as a motor vehicle operator with MWSS-472 and was not on active duty. WCVB reports.
On Wednesday, Coast Guard guards received a call from a 911 emergency service operator reporting a person in distress in the water in Luquillo, Puerto Rico.
They directed the launch of an MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter to conduct the search.
Search efforts continued Thursday with HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft and MH-60T Jayhawk helicopters deployed from Borinquen Air Station.
Multiple Emergency Management offices in the area, the Puerto Rico Office of Emergency Management and the Puerto Rico Police are also actively searching, according to the Coast Guard.
It came just hours after the American tourist was pulled from the water unresponsive and later pronounced dead.