FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. (WFLA) — The human remains found on a sunken sailboat near Fort Myers Beach on Friday have been identified as a man who went missing during Hurricane Ian.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office said divers found the boat “Good Girl” in Matanzas Pass. According to a Twitter post from Sheriff Carmine Marceno, the vessel belonged to a missing man who was last seen on the boat the same day the Category 4 storm made landfall.
The sheriff’s office was called to Salty Sam’s Marina on Thursday after a worker spotted wreckage from a vessel they hadn’t seen before, according to WBBH. The sheriff’s office found human remains inside when they returned to recover the boat.
“Good Girl” belonged to James “Denny” Hurst, the last remaining person who was reported missing in Lee County after Hurricane Ian slammed southwest Florida. Just two days before Hurst’s vessel was discovered, a debris removal company found a body among the mangroves in Fort Myers Beach. The body was later identified as 82-year-old Ilonka Knes, who also went missing during the storm.
“I mean, you know, we all know it’s him,” said Hurst’s daughter, Shannon Vaughan, told WBBH after his boat was found. “There’s absolutely no doubt. Like I said, he lived on the boat.”
On Sunday, the sheriff’s office confirmed the remains found aboard “Good Girl” belonged to Hurst. The boat was found right across the bay from where it was docked before the storm.
“It’s finally done. You know? It’s just finally done,” Shannon Vaughan told WBBH. “We’re glad that you’re finally found and you’re home. I love you. I miss you. We all do.”
