Local News

Bodies of 2 missing boaters found in Tampa Bay

Posted: 04/06/08 at 7:17 pm EDT

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Authorities have found the bodies of two missing boaters in Tampa Bay, a day after fielding a distress call about a boat on fire.

Authorities identified one of the people retrieved Sunday as Alton Earl Jones, 56. A female victim has not yet been identified. Coast Guard officials say there may have been a third boater.

The night-long search for the boaters began Saturday at 8:30 p.m. when the Coast Guard received a call from a Spanish-speaking person reporting the blaze. About half an hour later, officials came across a fire-damaged, unmanned boat near MacDill Air Force Base.

The two victims were found Sunday around 11 a.m. The woman was wearing a life jacket; Jones' life jacket was partly on. Autopsies are planned for the pair.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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