UPDATE: 12:45 p.m. Wednesday
The Medical Examiner's Office has confirmed that the body of the swimmer found yesterday was Andru Bass.
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When 18-year-old Andru Bass went missing Sunday night after getting swept away in a rip current, a local four-wheel drive club sprang into action.
A member of 361 Offroad Rescue, Josue Maldonado, says the Corpus Christi Fire Department enlisted the help of his club and others to search for him.
"We just coast down the beach lights in the water, wait around, see if we see anything," Maldonado said. "(We'd) keep moving on to the next location. We just kept doing it as long as possible -- until he was found.”
That happened just before 4 p.m. Tuesday.
A beachgoer saw something in the water off J.P. Luby Beach a mile north of Zahn Road.
It was a body, and a family member would later identify it as Bass.
“It’s sad," Maldonado said. "(I) wish we could have found him sooner. The result might have been different."
Dozens of Bass' friends and family members gathered on the beach where his body was found.
None of them would agree to a formal interview, because they were so distraught.
Maldonado is hopeful that the body discovery will help them in the grieving process.
"It’s good that the family got some closure," he said. "I know the family is very distraught just waiting -- just looking for an answer. And I’m happy they got it.”
Bass' is just the latest death due to rip currents in our area, and with big crowds expected this upcoming weekend for Memorial Day, Corpus Christi's fire chief urges beachgoers to be careful.
"You need to be cognizant that there are rip currents that can turn a weekend from a celebratory one to one of tragedy,” Chief Robert Rocha said.
Family members are preparing for Andru's funeral.
Some of his friends and family has placed a makeshift cross in the dunes marking the spot along the beach where crews found his body.
