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W-File: tr991009.html

Type: Lake Michigan Triangle
Date: October 9, 1999
Location: Lake Michigan, 8 miles east of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel web site

Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Oct. 10, 1999.

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Empty boat found 8 miles out in lake

Search fails to find owner, a scuba instructor

By Marie Rohde
of the Journal Sentinel staff
Last Updated: Oct. 9, 1999

The Coast Guard and law enforcement authorities searched in vain Saturday for the owner of a pleasure boat that was found unmanned and going in tight circles in Lake Michigan.

The search lasted until 7 p.m. Saturday and was to resume at sunrise today.

The boat was found early Saturday afternoon, about eight miles east of Whitefish Bay, according to the Coast Guard. A boat and helicopter from the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department joined two boats from the Coast Guard and one boat each from the Milwaukee police and fire departments in the search for Sean O'Brien, 34, of Port Washington.

O'Brien, a scuba diving instructor who also is an advertising salesman for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, is the owner of the boat. He was believed to have left Milwaukee sometime after 11:30 p.m. Friday after attending a concert, and apparently was alone on the boat, according to the Coast Guard.

He was to meet a friend at the marina in Port Washington at 7 a.m. Saturday to take his two boats out of the water for the winter, but he missed the appointment.

Boaters on the lake noticed O'Brien's craft, a 20-foot boat named the Atlantis, Saturday afternoon, and a motor vessel named Grey Beard called the Coast Guard at 1:30 p.m.

The Coast Guard responded and boarded the boat and found its radio working. It did not appear to have any mechanical problems.

Although flags were raised on the Atlantis to indicate that someone was diving from the boat, authorities do not believe that to be the case. No equipment bag in which O'Brien would have carried a suit was found onboard.

The Coast Guard also said the boat's running lights were on, indicating the incident might have happened at night or in fog. The boat had less than a quarter-tank of fuel, according to a Coast Guard release issued Saturday night.

Dennis Cherney, harbor master in Port Washington, said O'Brien was alone when he left port between 5 and 5:30 p.m. Friday evening, headed for Milwaukee.

O'Brien, who lives in Port Washington, told friends he intended to dock on the Milwaukee River before going to the John Mellencamp concert at the Bradley Center with other friends.

He arrived in Milwaukee and met co-worker Perry Lewis and a client. Lewis said he was under the impression that O'Brien intended to stay in Milwaukee rather than leave that evening.

Coast Guard officials noted that a heavy fog hung over the lake this morning, and they were not sure when it had moved in.

O'Brien's boat was towed to the Coast Guard station in Milwaukee, but police had it by Saturday night. Detectives found O'Brien's pager onboard and were calling those who had left messages for him.

Today's search was to include at least two Coast Guard boats, two Coast Guard Auxiliary boats, one Coast Guard helicopter and two police boats.

O'Brien's mother and sister live in Atlanta, and Coast Guard officials say they were notified Saturday of his disappearance.

Carrie Antlfinger of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Oct. 11, 1999.

Coast Guard calls off search for boater on Lake Michigan

The craft belonging to the scuba diver/ad salesman was found 8 miles out

By Carrie Antlfinger
of the Journal Sentinel staff
Last Updated: Oct. 10, 1999

Coast Guard and law enforcement officials on Sunday night suspended the search for a Port Washington man whose boat was found abandoned in Lake Michigan about 8 miles east of Whitefish Bay.

Coast Guard officials said that although there no longer will be an organized search for the man, whose boat was found Saturday afternoon, the case is not closed.

Officials searched a 200-square-mile area for Sean O'Brien, 34, an advertising salesman for the automotive section at the Journal Sentinel and a licensed scuba diving instructor.

The 27-hour search for the 20-foot boat named Atlantis involved about 50 people and included boats from the Coast Guard, Coast Guard Auxiliary, Milwaukee Fire Department, Milwaukee Police Department and Ozaukee County, two helicopters and an airplane.

O'Brien was believed to have left Milwaukee sometime after 11:30 p.m. Friday after attending a concert and apparently was alone on the boat, according to the Coast Guard. The boat's running lights were on, indicating the incident might have happened at night or in fog, and there was less than a quarter-tank of fuel remaining.

Petty Officer Howard McCarthy said there was no indication of survival gear on the boat. Without it, he said, and with a water temperature of 60 degrees, a person probably would not be able to survive for more than 13 hours.

John Shuder, owner of a dive shop called The Underwater Connection, has known O'Brien for about four years.

Shuder said O'Brien especially enjoyed teaching beginner-level classes. "He wanted to introduce people to something exciting," Shuder said. "He truly loved to teach and was always helpful to others."

O'Brien enjoyed diving to see shipwreck sites in Lake Michigan, Shuder said. "Just from a personality standpoint, he was a very nice person."

Rich Dobson, senior vice president of advertising at the Journal Sentinel, said O'Brien worked hard for his customers and was well-respected.

Coast Guard officials said O'Brien's father, who lives in Houston, arrived Sunday in Milwaukee. They also said they would reconsider the status of the case if more information becomes available.

Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Oct. 12, 1999.

Port Washington police join probe of boater's disappearance

By Jeff Cole
of the Journal Sentinel staff

Last Updated: Oct. 11, 1999

Port Washington - The Port Washington Police Department has joined the investigation into the disappearance of Port Washington resident Sean O'Brien, Chief Edward Rudolph said Monday.

O'Brien, 34, has been missing since he left a concert in Milwaukee Friday night. His abandoned boat was found by the Coast Guard on Lake Michigan about eight miles east of Whitefish Bay.

"There is no evidence of foul play," Rudolph said. "This is kind of like Linda E."

The Linda E. was a fishing boat that disappeared in December while working on Lake Michigan. No trace of it, or its three crew members, has been found. (See W-File tr981211.htm. -Jim)

O'Brien took his boat from Port Washington's marina to Milwaukee to attend a Friday concert at the Bradley Center, Rudolph said Milwaukee Police Department reports show. O'Brien apparently tied up near N. Old World Third St. and walked to the concert, Rudolph said.

After the concert was over, O'Brien apparently walked back to the boat with the intention of traveling back to Port Washington, Rudolph said. The last time anyone saw O'Brien was around 11:30 p.m., Rudolph said.

"He was drinking at the concert," Rudolph said. "Witnesses told investigators that."

The 20-foot boat was one O'Brien used when he went scuba diving, the police chief said.

A friend who was supposed to meet O'Brien Saturday morning reported him missing.

Searchers from the Coast Guard, Coast Guard Auxiliary, Milwaukee's Police and Fire departments and Ozaukee County looked for O'Brien for 27 hours. The search was called off after a 200-square-mile area was covered.

Another Lake Michigan Triangle victim?