Body Of Missing Girl Found In Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH, CA — The body of a 5-year-old girl who was swept into the ocean in Laguna Beach was recovered Thursday, authorities said.

The girl was with her mother and a sibling when a powerful wave swept the trio into the ocean from the shoreline near Treasure Island Beach about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

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"Based on preliminary information, a mother and her two children were swept into the ocean by powerful water conditions while near the shoreline," Laguna Beach Marine Safety officials said in a news release.

Good samaritans entered the dangerous surf and rescued the mother and one child.

"This is one of the most heartbreaking incidents I have witnessed during my time serving this community," Laguna Beach Mayor Mark Orgill said in a statement.

The girl's body was found near Christmas Cove, roughly a quarter-mile north of Treasure Island Beach, The Orange County Register reported.

The discovery was made during an aerial survey of the coastline Thursday morning, the report said.

Crews from the Laguna Beach Marine Safety Department, the Orange County Sheriff's Department Harbor Patrol, and the U.S. Coast Guard spent Wednesday searching coastal and offshore areas using boats, personal watercraft, aircraft, dive teams, and shore-based personnel, but were unable to locate the girl.

"Search operations initially focus heavily on the last known location of a missing person," according to a statement from the city. "As time passes, particularly during periods of large surf and strong currents, search teams expand outward to areas where conditions may have carried a person beyond the original search zone."

Waves exceeding 9 feet have been breaking along beaches in Orange and Los Angeles counties, prompting warnings from the National Weather Service and local agencies.

The high surf is not expected to subside until later this week.