SAN DIEGO -- Authorities examined an oil slick a half-mile off Swami's Beach Wednesday to determine whether it could have come from the wreckage of a helicopter carrying a KFMB-TV photographer.Sean O'Kane, (pictured, right), 35, is presumed dead after the helicopter he was piloting disappeared Monday while flying from Montgomery Field to Long Beach.
Air traffic controllers lost contact with O'Kane shortly after he asked for an increase in altitude from 100 feet to 400 feet to get out of a cloud bank.The two-year employee of the station was in a Robinson R-22, and was on his way to an FAA check ride to obtain his private license.After searching the waters off Moonlight Beach Monday, attention shifted to an area between Swami's and nearby kelp beds, which could have swallowed the wreckage, KFMB reported.
"Survivability after 36 hours in ocean waters of 65 to 69 degrees is not good," Carlsbad fire Capt. Kim Blaylock said. "We will be looking for a body."Swami's is at the southern end of the Encinitas village area which runs along Highway 101, about a mile south of Moonlight Beach.Debris believed to be from the helicopter washed up Monday."A seat cushion was found about a mile-and-a-half out," San Diego County sheriff's Lt. Edna Ito said.A beachside memorial for O'Kane was set up by friends and co-workers. His family is in Dublin, Ireland.
Sean O'Kane, (pictured, right), 35, is presumed dead after the helicopter he was piloting disappeared Monday while flying from Montgomery Field to Long Beach.
Hear From O'Kane Family Friend
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