The body of a Florida man who went missing in Hurricane Ian in September has been found in a sunken boat months after the storm.
James “Danny” Hurst was the last known person still missing after the Category 4 hurricane hit Florida last year in Lee County, killing dozens and causing widespread devastation.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office announced Sunday that Hurst’s body was found on the sunken sailboat, “Good Girl,” which divers located in Matanzas Pass off Fort Myers Beach.
“Missing man James ‘Danny’ Hurst was last known to be on board during Hurricane Ian,” Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said in a tweet Friday, adding that divers were actively working to recover the vessel. “We are speaking to his family at this difficult time.”
The sheriff’s office was called to Salty Sam’s Marina on Thursday after a worker spotted a never-before-seen boat wreck, NBC News affiliate WBBH, based in Fort Myers, Florida, reported.
Marceno announced that during efforts to recover the ship, human remains were found in the boat.
The sheriff confirmed Sunday that the remains were Hearst’s.
“Mr. Hurst’s family has been notified,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”
Hearst’s daughter, Shannon Vaughn, told WBBH that her father was on the boat. She said she was happy that it was closed.
“It’s finally over. You know what? It’s just over,” Vaughn told WBBH. “We’re glad you were finally found and you’re home. I love you. I miss you. We all do.”
Hurst was known to have mobility issues and used a walker to get around, WBBH reported. He was last seen on his boat while docked at the Bay of Islands Marina on Sept. 28, the day Hurricane Ian made landfall, according to the outlet.
Friday’s discovery comes days after the body of an 82-year-old Florida woman who went missing after Hurricane Ian was found Tuesday.
A debris removal company contracted to clean up the area near Fort Myers Beach found the remains of Ilonka Keynes “deep inside the mangroves,” Marceno said at a news conference Thursday.
“These areas are inaccessible by boat and they are not visible from the air,” he said.
Knes lived in Fort Myers Beach with her husband, who was previously found dead, in an area that was “completely destroyed” when the Category 4 hurricane hit Florida.
Relatives requested a welfare check on Knes on Oct. 7, a week after the storm, but deputies were unable to locate him. He was declared missing on October 15 after several attempts to locate him.
Her body was found months later. 16 miles from her home, Marceno said. The cause of death was accidental drowning.
At the time, he said Ness’ death brought the total number of confirmed dead in the county to 74, with Hurst still missing.