ISLAMORADA, Fla. —The body of Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart has been reportedly found off the coast of Florida, according to a tweet from the U.S. Coast Guard.
Coast guard officials tweeted Friday evening that the Key Largo Volunteer Fire Department "reportedly found Stewart at a depth of 220 feet" off the Florida Keys.
Stewart's family issued a brief written statement Friday evening in response to the announcement.
"Unfortunately it is with a heavy heart that I share Rob has been found. We are deeply saddened but take comfort that he passed while doing what he loved," family spokeswoman Victoria Gormley wrote.
The tweet announcing the discovery of Stewart's body came just a couple of hours after the coast guard said it was planning to suspend the search at sunset.
Capt. Jeffrey Janszen told a news conference in Islamorada, Fla., that the coast guard was confident it had done everything it could do in the search for the 37-year-old.
The search covered more than 14,000 square kilometres — an area the size of Connecticut, Janszen said Friday afternoon. Thirteen volunteer aircraft and 20 volunteer boats were part of the search, along with many volunteer divers.
The Coast Guard had been looking for the 37-year-old Stewart since he was reported missing just before 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
They say Stewart disappeared after surfacing with a diver near Alligator Reef in the area of the Florida Keys.
The call came from the crew of a boat Stewart had been on.
Stewart was in Florida filming a follow up movie to his 2006 documentary "Sharkwater," called "Sharkwater Extinction," his sister said.
Stewart, a Toronto native, is also known for his documentaries that include "Revolution" and his memoir "Save the Humans."
