Family of missing boaters issues statement on search being called off

The family of missing Fort Myers boaters Randall Spivey and his nephew Brandon Billmaier have issued a statement through family friend and local attorney Paul Rocuant on the decision by the U.S. Coast Guard to suspend the search on Monday at sunset.

The pair have been missing since Friday, when they left Fort Myers on a deep water fishing trip. Their boat was found 70 miles off shore while in gear and moving without the passengers early Saturday morning.

In the statement, the family said they were briefed with Coast Guard leadership on Monday about the search effort, which has involved the Coast Guard, county and state resources. They believe the decision was the right one at this time.

“The search effort has covered an area larger than the entire state of Connecticut,” the family said. According to the Coast Guard, “if Randy and Brandon were on the surface of the water, they would have been found” based on the amount of resources used and the area covered, the family said in their statement.

“With that understanding, the Coast Guard has advised the family that as of sundown today, the active search must be suspended. While this is heartbreaking, the family is certain this is the correct decision and holds the deepest respect, gratitude, and acceptance for it,” the family said in a statement.

“Randy was an attorney helping those who were injured, for over 30 years. Likewise, following in his uncle’s footsteps, Brandon was also an attorney advocating for those who were injured as well. Few people were more concerned about the safety of innocent people than Randy and Brandon. We know, without question, that they would reach the same conclusion as the experts: that everything possible has been done. They would ask that this decision be respected and that the bravery and heroism of those who searched–those in the air and on the water doing the real, dangerous work–be honored.

“This is incredibly difficult for the family and for everyone hoping for a different outcome. We respectfully ask that the decision to suspend the search be honored, both from a professional agency standpoint and from a volunteer standpoint. The search area, which is now more than 100 miles offshore, continues to move west and farther from shore, creating increasing risk, and it is no longer safe to ask volunteers to put themselves in serious danger.

“For those who know Randy and Brandon, there is no doubt this is exactly how they would feel. The family asks for your compassion, understanding, and support during this unimaginably difficult time. We love you all,” the statement said.

Rocuant, who was involved with organizing volunteer search parties by boat, said about two dozen boats were used by volunteers to search for Billmaier and Spivey. “We are grateful for their help,” he said.

Rocuant said the Coast Guard and U.S. Air Force used the most advanced technologies available to them including thermal imaging.

“We were with the Coast Guard for an hour where they gave a very detailed presentation of how they have used overwhelming search and rescue,” Rocuant said. Rocuant said the family was “very, very unified in respecting the efforts that have been made and we think we are going to be putting people in danger if we continue (with the search).”

Rocuant said the farther away from shore the search grew, the more dangerous it became, he said. Boaters are traveling into the night to get back after exhaustive searches, he said.

“The Coast Guard did a search that was bigger than the state of Connecticut. They mapped out every single sortie that was aerially done, that was done by boat,” Rocuant said.

Rocuant said the entire search area was covered multiple times by boats and sophisticated aircraft.

Rocuant said the boat that was recovered and brought back to the U.S. Coast Guard station on Fort Myers Beach showed no signs of damage.

“The boat doesn’t appear to have any damage,” he said. Fishing equipment was still on the boat and fish had already been caught, he said. “The rods were not in the water. It may have been a medical emergency or an accident with one person going into the water unexpectedly,” he said.

Rocuant said Spivey had been his best friend for the last 30 years since they were starting out locally as attorneys. “It’s heart-wrenching,” Rocuant said. “The more important thing would be to make sure that nobody else gets hurt doing this (searching for the missing boaters).”

The family feels convinced that everything has been done to find the missing pair.

Spivey was “a man of complete integrity,” Rocuant said. “He was somebody who would always do the right thing even if no one was looking. He was extremely generous and humble. If somebody needed help, he would be the first one to help.”

Rocuant said that’s why he is not surprised so many had rushed to help in the search. “I looked up to him,” he said. “He was very dependable.”

Spivey left behind his wife, son and daughter. He also was survived by two sisters. Billmaier had just been married in the last year.

“He (Spivey) was an outdoorsman. He loved animals. His whole family loves animals,” Rocuant said. Spivey was a supporter of the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW).

Spivey, who was a personal injury lawyer “was very safety conscious,” Rocuant said. An avid fisherman, he and his son Randy had been on many fishing trips together, along with Billmaier.

According to a statement issued by the U.S. Coast Guard announcing the suspension of the search, Coast Guard crews covered approximately 6,700 square miles. The weather conditions included 10 mph winds and 3-foot seas.

“The Coast Guard diligently searched with our pilots, boat forces, cutter crews, and numerous partners,” said Lt. Amy Harrison, a search and rescue mission coordinator for Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg. “We saturated an incredibly large search area but, unfortunately, were unable to locate the two missing men.”

The missing boaters had left for their fishing trip at about 5 a.m. from Fort Myers on Friday in a 42-foot boat. They were reported missing at 9 p.m. on Friday after they did not return as expected by sunset. Sector St. Petersburg Coast Guard watchstanders coordinated the launch of rescue crews to the boaters’ last known position locating them at midnight. A rescue swimmer was lowered, stopped the engines, and anchored the vessel for safety.

Spivey’s son Randy was helping to organize search rescue teams of volunteers over the weekend.

Spivey said the family was “beyond grateful for every person who has stepped up, shared, searched, and prayed.”

Speaking before the search was called off, Spivey said his dad was an experienced boater who regularly went deep water fishing.

“My dad is a highly highly experienced boater,” Spivey said. He said his dad has been boating “his entire life” and that he and Brandon have been doing offshore fishing with him often since they were kids. “They are two of the kindest, most selfless people I know. They are my role models,” he said.