Mexican authorities are searching for a popular YouTuber from San Diego who was reported missing after fishing off the coast of Baja California on Tuesday.
“He’s an adventurer. He pushes the envelope. That’s part of what we love about him,“ said Phil Friedman, a fellow angler, podcaster and close friend.
Officials say Mikey Rijavec was fishing eight miles off the coast on Tuesday when he issued a mayday call. Over the phone, fellow anglers tried to help him with the engine trouble he was having when the call suddenly ended.
“What could have happened? Oh my God, it’s endless. It could be foul play. You never know, it’s something that happens at sea sometimes. It could be a whale, it could be a shark,” Friedman said.
Private boat owners, the Mexican Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard have all helped in the search.
The YouTuber was piloting a skiff. It was recovered five miles off the coast. The craft is just 14 feet long. The six-horsepower outboard engine was not recovered.
Rijavec’s Ocean Beach neighbors are concerned.
“The fact that it was washed ashore with the storms down there. Baja can be stormy. I don’t know,” Michael Robinson said.
“It’s really sad. He’s a really nice guy, and fishing is his passion,“ Isabella Atkinson said.
Friedman is holding out hope for his friend. He is not giving up on the possibility that Mikey made it to shore or is somehow afloat in a survival suit.
“That would be, of course, my hope. My prayers and thoughts are for that kind of a resolution,” Friedman said.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard told NBC 7 they initiated the search on Tuesday but have since handed it over to Mexican authorities.
