Austin Stephanos And Perry Cohen, Both 14, Still Missing After Disappearing Off Coast Of Florida On Friday

by Olivia Truffaut-WongJuly 28, 2015, 5:13 pmNews, News Feed >

The search for teens Austin Stephanos and Perry Cohen continues off the Florida coast after the U.S. Coast Guard discovered their capsized boat on Sunday.

Coast Guard Continues Search For Austin Stephanos And Perry Cohen

Stephanos and Cohen, both 14, went missing on Friday after they took a 19-foot white boat out off the coast of Jupiter, Fla., to go fishing. According to their parents, Stephanos and Cohen had gone fishing together before, and were allowed to take the boat out on their own as long as they stayed close to home.

The two were last seen buying fuel for the boat in Jupiter and were reported missing later that day after they failed to come home. The U.S. Coast Guard has now searched over 26,000 nautical square miles. According to their parents, the boys were absolutely not allowed to take the boat out into the ocean, but the boat was found off the coast of Daytona Beach, nearly 200 miles north of Jupiter. According reports, the boys might have suffered rough waters Friday afternoon due to thunderstorms.

“This provides us an intelligent view of the currents in the area, which helps us dictate where we are going to put our personnel. Our priority is finding these boys,” said Coast Guard Petty Officer Stephen Lehmann.

The Coast Guard anchored the boat where it was found, and are studying currents in the area to try to determine where the boys may have drifted off. One life vest was discovered on board, but the families said they do not know how many life vests were originally kept in the hull, so it is possible both Stephanos and Cohen were wearing one.

Mothers Pamela Cohen And Carly Black Plea For Sons’ Safe Return

The Stephanos and Cohen families, with the help of Cohen’s neighbor and NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath, are offering a $100,000 reward for anyone who can help return the boys safely home. “I just want them home. I know he’s coming home. I just want him home now,” said Carly Black, Stephanos’ mother.

Cohen’s mother, Pamela Cohen, has taken to social media to ask for help. On Monday, she shared a photo of her son on Instagram, along with a plea for help searching beaches. “Anyone that is located near the beaches from Jupiter Florida up the coast to the beaches of Georgia – PLEASE GO OUT AND WALK YOUR BEACHES!! Look for any sign of our boys Perry and Austin. KEEP THE FAITH,” she wrote.

Perry Cohen (photo credit: Pamela Cohen @perminak/Instagram)

According to a flyer made by the families and posted by Pamela Cohen, they now “believe the boys made floating devices with the items missing from the boat…Engine cover, white yeti cooler and life jackets.”

Black and Pamela spoke to Today on Tuesday, saying they hope their sons’ experience being on the open water will bring them home safely. “It’s not even second nature at this point. It’s in their blood. This is something they’ve prepared for their whole boating life. This is – they’re out there,” Black said.

On Monday, the Coast Guard announced that a naval vessel had joined the search, and that search and rescue efforts had been concentrated towards Jacksonville. “That’s where our flow models have shown that the most likelihood of them being, so that’s currently where we are focusing our search efforts, about 60 to 70 miles off Jacksonville,” Lehman said.

Article by Olivia Truffaut-Wong

Olivia Truffaut-Wong was born and raised in Berkeley, California, where she developed her love of all things entertainment. After moving to New York City to earn her degree in Film Studies, she stayed on the East Coast to follow her passion and become an entertainment writer. She lives on a diet of television, movies and food.