A two-day search for missing Chinese mariner Guo Chuan ended late Wednesday, according to U.S. Coast Guard Hawaii Branch officials.

They said they did not find the missing sailor and expressed deep condolences to Guo’s family, friends and sailing team.

Guo, considered the best mariner in China, set out from San Francisco on October 18, trying to set a solo sailing record across the Pacific to Shanghai, China.

After receiving reports that Guo had missed his Hawaii arrival time Tuesday, rescue operations began.

Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules surveillance crews conducted six search patterns covering nearly 12,000 square kilometers of water in the vicinity of the charted course of Guo’s 30-meter super trimaran.

The amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island deployed an MH-60 Seahawk helicopter Wednesday, once rescuers were in range to attempt contact with Guo, whose craft was located 1,000 kilometers northwest of the Hawaiian island of Oahu.

Radio calls went unanswered, so rescuers deployed an inflatable boat and crew. The boat crew found a life jacket on board the trimaran but no sign of Guo.

This report was produced in collaboration with VOA’s Mandarin service.
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