Coast Guard suspends search for missing surfer Alex 'Ace Cool' Cooke
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This undated photo released by the Honolulu Police Department, shows Alec Cooke. Officials are searching for Cooke, a Hawaii big wave surfer after he went missing on Oahu’s North Shore earlier this week. (Honolulu Police Department via AP)
The search for missing big-wave surfer and Hawaii celebrity "Ace Cool" was suspended Thursday, U.S. Coast Guard officials said.
Alec "Ace Cool" Cooke, 59, was last seen Tuesday before he went surfing during a 20- to 25-foot swell near Waimea Bay. His girlfriend reported him missing Wednesday after he didn't return to his Waialua home. Cooke's truck was found Wednesday with his dog and his keys still inside, according to KITV4.
"We've suspended several searches recently for folks who've gone missing in the water without locating them and it does not get easier," Cmdr. Arex Avanni said in a statement. Avanni is the deputy commanding officer at Coast Guard Sector Honolulu.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"As with any missing persons search we saturated the area in an attempt to locate Mr. Cooke, but pending further developments, we have decided to suspend the active search," he said. "The Pacific Ocean is very dangerous, especially when we have heavy surf conditions. Our thoughts go out to his friends and family."
Cooke is a local celebrity in Hawaii, according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. He was considered a top surfer in the 1980s and has worked as an extra on television shows and movies set in Hawaii.
The Coast Guard says it used airplanes, helicopters and jet skis to search about 8,930 square miles of the Pacific Ocean for Cooke.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Associated Press contributed to this report.