The search for two missing males in the water at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront was suspended Sunday afternoon due to rough conditions in the water, VBPD and the Coast Guard said.
Virginia Beach Police and the Coast Guard had transitioned the mission from a rescue to a recovery, according to Jody Saunders with VBPD’s Public Affairs Office.
One man in his 20s washed ashore and was taken to the hospital in critical condition, but his condition as of Sunday evening is not known.
Watch: VB EMS details response to missing swimmers
Virginia Beach EMS PIO details response to missing swimmers
Around 8:25 p.m., first responders got a call about three people who were in the ocean near 16th Street, who were “struggling to make it to shore.
Helicopters, fire department drones, and marine response were deployed as hundreds of onlookers gathered on the boardwalk.
Watch: One critical, two missing at VB Oceanfront
One critical, two missing at Virginia Beach Oceanfront
The Coast Guard detailed its efforts to rescue the swimmers in a press release Sunday evening.