Sea search continues
for Waimea boy, 12

Clues include damage to a plank bridge rope
and a flashlight found in 20 feet of water

CAPTAIN COOK, Hawaii » A Waimea boy missing since Saturday night while night fishing in Kona with family members may have slipped on a makeshift bridge and fallen into the sea, police said.

A third day of searching was to resume today for Alexander Derego, 12. The boy was reported missing about 8 p.m. Saturday while fishing with an adult brother and an uncle.

The site where the boy was reported missing is north of Kealakekua Bay and called Rock in the Water. It's a well-known spot for fishing for ulua, said Kona police Capt. Paul Kealoha.

The shore is a rocky cliff, 10 to 20 feet high, Kealoha said. From the shore, a plank 10 to 15 feet long, leads to the rock, and a rope extends along the plank for walkers to stabilize themselves, he said.

People searching for the boy over the weekend discovered that the rope was damaged, Kealoha said.

Details were unclear, and it's not certain that the makeshift bridge is connected to Derego's disappearance, he said.

Searchers found Derego's flashlight in about 20 feet of water. He was described by police as a good swimmer, but this was his first time visiting that site, they said.

Family members told authorities that they simply became aware they hadn't seen the boy in the darkness, and then they couldn't find him.

Almost 30 people from county, state, and federal agencies such as the Coast Guard joined the search over the weekend and yesterday, the county Fire Department said. They included off-duty police who went diving in the area looking for the boy, Kealoha said.

The case is classified as a missing person, and foul play is not suspected, Kealoha said.

Anyone with knowledge about the case is asked to call police at 935-3311.