Military continues search for airman sucked out to sea while snorkeling off coast of Japan

The U.S. and Japanese militaries continue searching for an Air Force member who was sucked out to sea while snorkeling off the coast of the Japanese island of Okinawa.

American military ships and aircraft, with the help of the Japanese Coast Guard and local fire and police departments, continued the search for the unidentified airman Monday after he was sucked out to sea while snorkeling with a group of fellow service members, according to a report from Stars and Stripes.

The airman was one of six Americans snorkeling near an offshore reef when three of them were pulled away from the group by a current and waves, Air Force 18th Wing spokesman Staff Sgt. Kyle Johnson told Stars and Stripes. 

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Coral reefs are seen along the coast near the U.S. Marine base Camp Schwab, off the tiny hamlet of Henoko in Nago, on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.
(REUTERS/Kyodo)

Two Japanese swimmers attempted to rescue the three Americans by chasing them down with surfboards and floats, with a 20-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman assigned to a nearby base being rescued and receiving aid on the scene before being transported to U.S. Naval Hospital Okinawa at Camp Foster for further treatment.

The third service member remained missing, causing the Japanese Coast Guard to dispatch a helicopter and begin a search for the American on Sunday.

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The other members of the group who were rescued escaped with minor injuries, while authorities said the search for the missing airman will resume on Tuesday.