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- Sep 16, 2003
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http://www.miamiherald.com/459/story/986586.html
sad... boat was found in the mangroves with a tube still in the water. father's body recovered (although not officially id'd), little girl is still missing.
We were out sailing a J24 yesterday afternoon, weather was beautiful, 10 to 12kts.
some reports state the fuel tank was empty.
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A body believed to be that of a boater missinng since Sunday along with his young daughter was found Monday afternoon floating on Biscayne Bay, fire officials said.
A passing boater spotted the body in the waters between Black Point Marina and Chicken Key just after 1 p.m., confirmed Lt. Eddy Ballester of Miami-Dade fire rescue.
Miami-Dade police have not officially identified the victim but a massive search had been under way for Phil Burke, 49, and his 8-year-old daughter, Tara, both of Palmetto Bay.
Tara Burke remains missing.
The two had sailed out of Black Point Marina in South Miami-Dade on Sunday afternoon on a 17-foot Key West boat.
Crews from the U.S. Coast Guard, Miami-Dade fire rescue, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and other agencies are continuing the search for the girl.
''We've committed every asset of our department, land, sea and air to finding this missing girl,'' Ballester said, adding that firefighters were walking the mangroves looking for her.
Their empty boat was found Monday morning, stuck in the mangroves near Black Pont Marina, where the two had sailed out of about 4 p.m. Sunday.
The boat engine was turned off and an inner tube could be seen still attached to the boat.
Family members told officials Burke had taken his daughter out to look at lighthouses near Biscayne Bay.
When they didn't come back Sunday evening, a family member reported them overdue about 12:30 a.m., Coast Guard officials reported.
''He's a good family man, a very, very experienced boater,'' his mother, Phoebe Burke, said by phone from her home in California.
Burke and his wife, Gelina, also have a 13-year-old daughter, Tessa, she said. Phil Burke has had boats for years. About 5 a.m., the Coast Guard contacted officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, whose officers began looking for the boat.
FWC officers found the boat just before 8 a.m. in mangroves, which line the coast.
''The boat was right-side-up,'' said Officer Jorge Pino, an FWC spokesman. ``The boat was in good condition, no signs of a collision.''
It is not known if Burke and his daughter were wearing life vests.
Phoebe Burke said her son works for a company that sells printing presses and he's responsible for the company's sales in Latin America.
The case is now being investigated by Miami-Dade police department's missing persons unit.
We were out sailing a J24 yesterday afternoon, weather was beautiful, 10 to 12kts.
some reports state the fuel tank was empty.
-----
A body believed to be that of a boater missinng since Sunday along with his young daughter was found Monday afternoon floating on Biscayne Bay, fire officials said.
A passing boater spotted the body in the waters between Black Point Marina and Chicken Key just after 1 p.m., confirmed Lt. Eddy Ballester of Miami-Dade fire rescue.
Miami-Dade police have not officially identified the victim but a massive search had been under way for Phil Burke, 49, and his 8-year-old daughter, Tara, both of Palmetto Bay.
Tara Burke remains missing.
The two had sailed out of Black Point Marina in South Miami-Dade on Sunday afternoon on a 17-foot Key West boat.
Crews from the U.S. Coast Guard, Miami-Dade fire rescue, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and other agencies are continuing the search for the girl.
''We've committed every asset of our department, land, sea and air to finding this missing girl,'' Ballester said, adding that firefighters were walking the mangroves looking for her.
Their empty boat was found Monday morning, stuck in the mangroves near Black Pont Marina, where the two had sailed out of about 4 p.m. Sunday.
The boat engine was turned off and an inner tube could be seen still attached to the boat.
Family members told officials Burke had taken his daughter out to look at lighthouses near Biscayne Bay.
When they didn't come back Sunday evening, a family member reported them overdue about 12:30 a.m., Coast Guard officials reported.
''He's a good family man, a very, very experienced boater,'' his mother, Phoebe Burke, said by phone from her home in California.
Burke and his wife, Gelina, also have a 13-year-old daughter, Tessa, she said. Phil Burke has had boats for years. About 5 a.m., the Coast Guard contacted officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, whose officers began looking for the boat.
FWC officers found the boat just before 8 a.m. in mangroves, which line the coast.
''The boat was right-side-up,'' said Officer Jorge Pino, an FWC spokesman. ``The boat was in good condition, no signs of a collision.''
It is not known if Burke and his daughter were wearing life vests.
Phoebe Burke said her son works for a company that sells printing presses and he's responsible for the company's sales in Latin America.
The case is now being investigated by Miami-Dade police department's missing persons unit.
