Virginia Beach Body Recovered; Coastal Searches Ongoing

An 11-year-old boy, Guillermo “Big G” Cuellar III, who used Lego building to cope with brain cancer treatment, received free U.S. Legoland tickets for him and his parents and his family is seeking help to travel there. In Morecambe Bay, rescue teams searched during Storm Amy for a person reportedly in the water who was later confirmed to be a wild swimmer and was safe despite hazardous conditions. In Virginia Beach, a 23-year-old visiting man signaled for help while swimming near 12th Street; a bystander attempted a rescue and a large multi-agency search involving rescue swimmers, fireboats, drones, police, Ocean Rescue and the U.S. Coast Guard was launched and suspended around 7:30 p.m. The man’s body was recovered Monday afternoon near 23rd Street, about a mile north of where he went missing, and authorities have not released his name pending next-of-kin notification; beachgoers praised lifeguards while noting the unusually large scale of the response and some delay before Coast Guard helicopters arrived. Separately, Galveston authorities began searching Sunday for a missing 21-year-old man from Richmond, Texas, near 73rd and Seawall Boulevard amid rough water and red-flag warnings, and officials are continuing investigations and urging beachgoers to heed warnings and exercise caution.