ORLANDO, Fla. — The Coast Guard ended its search for two missing boaters, Randall Spivey, aged 57, and Brandon Billmaier, aged 33, at sunset on Monday. The search spanned around 6,700 square miles as crews continued efforts to find the men who went missing during a fishing trip.
The hunt for the two boaters began after a family member reported them missing around 9 p.m. on Friday. The men had departed for a fishing trip about 100 miles offshore and were expected back at sunset.
The Coast Guard and partner agency crews conducted searches by air and sea, covering an area roughly the size of Connecticut. During the search, weather conditions included winds of around 10 mph and seas reaching three feet.
A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater found the men’s vessel drifting about 70 miles west of Fort Myers around midnight on Saturday. They sent a rescue swimmer to cut off the engines and secure the boat for safety. The vessel was then returned to Station Fort Myers Beach for further examination.
Search and rescue mission coordinator for Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, Lt. Amy Harrison, stated, “The Coast Guard diligently searched with our pilots, boat forces, cutter crews and numerous partners.” She affirmed that the search area was extensive and the coordination involved was significant.
Capt. Corrie Sergent, commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, addressed the decision to suspend the search: “There is no harder decision than suspending a search. I am incredibly grateful for the crews, partners and volunteers across this community who executed this massive search with the utmost professionalism, persistence and compassion.”
The FBI is now leading the investigation into the whereabouts of the missing boaters.
Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2025 Cox Media Group
