Search for Huntington Beach Surfer Ends Happily

HUNTINGTON BEACH — A 1 1/2-hour search for a missing surfer by Huntington Beach police and lifeguards Friday ended when the surfer found his erstwhile rescuers instead.

About 7:15 p.m., the manager of the Ruby’s restaurant at the municipal pier reported seeing a surfer swamped by a large wave but didn’t see him reappear, Police Lt. Gary Brooks said. The man reported the incident about 8 p.m., and police and city and state lifeguards searched the water around the pier.

But Brooks said the water had carried the surfer down to a dark area of the beach, near a lifeguard tower.

“It was dark and nobody saw him, and he crawled out of the water and came up to us and said, ‘What’s going on?’ ” Brooks said. It was about 9:45 p.m. Based on the manager’s description, rescuers knew it was the surfer they were looking for, Brooks said.